On April 18, 2014, the Ministry of Commerce (MOC) promulgated the Guiding Opinions on the Declaration for Concentration of Operators Subject to Summary Procedure (for Trial Implementation) (the Guiding Opinions), which took effect on the same day.

The Guiding Opinions set forth various points for reference by business operators participating in a proposed concentration that intend to declare to the Anti-Monopoly Bureau of MOC (the Bureau) that the concentration qualifies as a simple case and accordingly may be reviewed pursuant to a summary procedure. The key points are summarized below:

• Optional Pre-Declaration Discussion. At its discretion, an operator may apply to the Bureau for a discussion on whether the transaction to be declared meets the standards of simple cases prior to a formal declaration. The application for discussion is required to be made in written form and submitted by fax, postal or personal service.

• Public Notice Period. After an operator submits its application to the Bureau to declare its proposed concentration as a simple case, and the application is officially placed on file, the Bureau is required to disclose the applicant’s Disclosure Form on the Bureau’s website for a period of 10 days (the Public Notice Period); and

• Public Comments. During the Public Notice Period, any third party may submit written comments to the Bureau on whether the transaction should qualify to be reviewed under the summary procedure.