Kernrechtsfrage
Whether the division of an existing watch-industry business among its former partners counts as the opening of new undertakings under Art. 3(1) UB and is therefore subject to authorization.
Extrahierter Entscheid
Yes. Even if all assets and liabilities are taken over together, the business does not pass as a whole to the partners; it ceases and new undertakings arise in its place. The exception for transfer 'with assets and liabilities' cannot be extended to this different situation.
Extrahierte Begründung
The court relied on the wording and structure of Art. 3(1) UB, emphasizing that the statute allows no-bewilligung only for a single case: transfer of the undertaking as a whole. A division among partners is economically and legally different, creates new undertakings, and increases the risk of undesirable entrants into the watch industry.