In a decision dated December 19, 2023, the French Competition Authority fined the ROLEX group 91.6 million euros for prohibiting its authorized distributors from reselling its watches online for more than 10 years.
The draft law on emergency measures to combat inflation in FMCG products has been adopted and published in the French Official Journal on November 17, 2023.
The changes to the annual commercial negotiations calendar are applicable to all agreements concerning FMCG products marketed on French territory between any distributor operating a predominantly food retailing business (excluding DROM-COM) and any FMCG supplier.
Following the adoption of the March 30, 2023 law aimed at strengthening the balance in commercial relations between suppliers and distributors, the DGCCRF is updating its guidelines on logistics penalties.
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Abuse of dominance / Exclusivity clauses
The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) confirms that abusive conduct by distributors forming part of the distribution network of a producer in a dominant position can be imputed to the latter under article 102 TFEU if it is established that such conduct was not adopted independently by the distributors, but form part of a unilateral commercial policy of the producer implemented though the distributors.
Many entrepreneurs who want to start distributing branded products wonder whether it is necessary to obtain the agreement of the brand owner (the supplier) and to enter into a distribution contract.
The answer to this question depends on the nature of the product and the distribution method chosen by the supplier.
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The DMA establishes a set of objective criteria for qualifying a large online platform as a "gatekeeper." Companies that qualify as such (mainly, but not only, GAFAMs), which are therefore in a "gatekeeper" position vis-à-vis a large number of users, will have to comply with the DMA's obligations
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Ordinance 2021-1734 transposing the so-called "Omnibus" directive on the better application and modernization of EU consumer protection rules, which aims to regulate certain practices in online commerce, came into force on May 28, 2022.
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Until now, criminal sanctions for violations of competition law, as provided for in the Commercial Code, could be applied in the future. In addition to administrative fines for companies (up to 10% of the worldwide turnover of the companies concerned), prison sentences and fines for individuals could be added.
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Under French law, influencers must indicate in their publications on social networks (by a logo or an oral or written mention for example) when it is a paid partnership. The lack of this mention constitutes an unfair commercial practice, sanctioned by heavy fines.
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While the period of commercial negotiations between suppliers and distributors ended as every year on March 1 with the signing of annual agreements, the practices of some large retailers are in the sights of the authorities, whose action is intensifying.
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After simplifying and digitizing the procedure in 2019, the Authority is now offering greater legal certainty to companies by allowing them to request the designation of a team in charge of the file and by committing to rule on the completeness of the file within 10 working days.
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