Generally, the more information made publicly available to market participants, the more effective competition is likely to be. In the normal course of business, enterprises exchange information on a variety of matters legitimately and with no risk to the competitive process. Indeed, competition may benefit from the sharing of information, for example, on new technologies or market opportunities.
The exchange of information may however lead to a lessening of competition where it serves to remove any uncertainties in the market and therefore eliminate any competition between enterprises. In such cases, the exchange of information is prohibited under Section 17 of the Act. It does not matter that the information could have been obtained from other sources. Whether or not the information exchange substantially lessens competition will depend on the circumstances of each individual case: the market characteristics, the type of information and the way in which it is exchanged. As a general rule, information-sharing is more likely to have a significant effect on competition the smaller the number of enterprises operating in the market, the more frequent the exchange and the more current, sensitive and confidential the nature of the information that is exchanged. If the information exchange is part of a cartel agreement, it would also fall under Section 35 of the Act.