The European Commission has sent a very clear message to businesses around the world that they can be fined huge amounts for breaching EU competition law. The European competition law regulator fined six manufacturers of LCD screens €650m for their part in a four year cartel, despite the fact that the participants were from the Far East and their cartel activity took place there. The reason was that the effect of their cartel activity was felt in the European Union, with the suppliers being responsible for the vast majority of LCD panels in televisions and computers sold in Europe. The companies had fixed prices and shared sensitive pricing information. The manufacturers knew they were doing wrong, because documents between them advised that they minimised written records about their discussions.