In the third of our series of blog posts on antitrust and e-commerce in Europe, we look at the €40 million fine imposed on clothing company Guess by the European Commission (EC) in December 2018.
The case is the first in which the EC finds that restrictions on the use of a brand name for
For twenty years or more, the European Commission (EC) has taken little or no formal enforcement action against anticompetitive distribution practices. However, the recent fines on Nike, Guess and others mark a dramatic change of policy. In the latter half of 2018, the EC imposed fines totalling over €150 million in relation to online distribution
On March 25, the European Commission (EC) fined Nike €12.5 million for restricting cross-border and online sales of branded merchandise by its European licensees. In December last year, the EC fined Guess €40 million for imposing restrictions on the use of its brand by distributors online. In total in 2018, the EC imposed fines of
Retailers have been paying close attention to recent developments in the MasterCard/Visa Interchange Fee litigation, and for good reason. Every year, consumers increasingly expect and demand that retailers accept credit cards for payment, and for many, interchange fees—or the “swipe fees” retailers must pay to the banks and networks for every transaction—have now become the
This year, digital media spending is expected to outstrip spending on traditional media, such as television and print. Advertisers, lured by the promise of precise targeting, better ability to measure return on investment, and changing consumer media consumption patterns, have poured money into digital at an almost exponential rate. And, while there are studies (largely by digital media agencies) documenting the effectiveness of such advertising, there remain major questions regarding the effectiveness and efficiency of such spending.
On February 12, 2016, the Federal Bar Association will host a day-long Fashion Law Conference at Parsons School of Design (Starr Foundation Hall in the New School’s stunning new University Center) on the last day of New York Fashion Week!
Speakers include in-house counsel from The Estee Lauder Companies, Inc., Tiffany & Co., New York
Simon Property Group was sued recently for using anticompetitive tactics to prevent key retailers from following through with lease agreements. Gumwood HP Shopping Partners LP alleges that Simon has a pattern of abusing its power to bully its tenants into complying with its wishes. The suit asserts Simon engaged in monopolization, attempted monopolization and restraint of trade in violation of the Sherman Act.
Continue Reading Simon Property Group Accused of Using Anticompetitive Tactics
On May 5th, Crowell & Moring’s Retail Law partnered with the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) to host the first webcast of a 3-part retail law series: “Recovery Opportunities for Retailers: Turning A Retail Law Department Into A Profit Center in Retail Leasing, Global Sourcing and Antitrust Litigation.” The webcast was moderated by
On Thursday, May 5th at 11am PST / 2pm EST, Crowell & Moring’s Retail Law practice will partner with the Association of Corporate Counsel (ACC) to host the first webcast of a 3-part retail law series. The topic of the first webcast is “Recovery Opportunities for Retailers: Turning A Retail Law Department Into
‘resale price maintenance’, antitrust
Continue Reading Robust State Enforcement of Minimum Resale Price Maintenance May Require New Approaches to Pricing