Brussels, 19/04/2002 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has opened an investigation into an agreement reached on the art market between the two leading fine art auction houses, Christie's and Sotheby's. The two together dominate the sector with a combined market share of around 90%. The Commission sent a statement of objections to these two auction houses, giving them six weeks in which to answer. After over two years of investigation, the Commission has gathered important documents allowing it, today, to heavily suspect that Christie's and Sotheby's have colluded in fixing commission fees and other trading terms. The cartel is believed to have been set up in 1993 and to have entered into an agreement affecting auction sales between 1993 and early 2000, when the parties appear to have recovered their freedom to set prices independently. The aim was to put an end to the fierce competition raging between the two establishments in the eighties and nineties. In particular, the two chairmen of the time, Alfred Taubman for Sotheby's and Anthony Tennant for Christie's, seem to have made peace by reaching an agreement on a common increase in commission fees paid by sellers as well as on other aspects of a trading nature that allow sales houses to compete, such as the paying of advances on payments and providing guarantees to the sellers as to the minimum price to be achieved at auction. The first high level meetings then continued with regular contacts and meetings between the CEOs of the two companies. The Commission was alerted in January 2000 by Christopher Davidge, former Chief Executive Officer of Christie's, who also addressed the US Justice Department calling for leniency in both jurisdictions. After this, Sotheby's decided to also collaborate with the European Commission in order to benefit from a reduced fine if ever there should be one. Amelia Torres, spokesperson for Commissioner Monti, recalled that the American and European positions for dealing with agreements are very different. While, in the United States, participants in a merger may receive heavy sentences including imprisonment, the EU has over the past few years adopted a far more lenient attitude, as long as the companies collaborate with the investigators. The rules adopted in 1996 concerning the non-imposition of fines or the reduction of such fines for denouncing companies, updated in February this year, aim to encourage the members of a cartel to denounce each other and to spontaneously put an end to the unlawful behaviour.