Consumer Welfare Standards - Advantages and Disadvantages Compared to Alternative Standards

Standards in competition policy, such as the consumer welfare standard or the protecting competition standard, are the subject of considerable debate. This paper considers the relative advantages and disadvantages of alternative standards by first identifying their desirable attributes and then assessing several candidate standards against them. It was prepared as a background note for discussions on “Consumer Welfare Standards - Advantages and Disadvantages compared to Alternative Standards” taking place at the June 2023 session of the OECD Competition Committee.