59The applicant claims that the Commission has failed to fulfil its obligation to adduce proof of the alleged anti-competitive effects. Since the information exchange system in question was applied from 1975 to 1991, assessment of it under Article 85(1) of the Treaty ought to be based solely on the assessment of its actual effects and not simply its potential effects. In the absence of actual anti-competitive effects, any doubt ought to benefit the parties making the notification. By confusing the notions of effect on competition and effect on trade between Member States, the Commission did not investigate whether, as a result of the information exchange in question, competition was actually restricted and it has not established the existence of a negative effect on competition resulting from the exchange of information at issue. In the present case, nothing leads to the conclusion that an information exchange system affects competition on a highly concentrated market. If no enquiry is made into the negative effects on competition resulting from the practice in question, any agreement could ultimately be regarded as having an effect on competition.