On September 25, 2009, the German Federal Cartel Office (FCO) levied a fine of €11.5 million against contact lens provider CIBA Vision Vertriebs GmbH (CIBA) for fixing minimum resale prices and restricting Internet and wholesale sales of its products [1]. This is the third decision imposed by the FCO in 2009, condemning minimum resale price maintenance (RPM) [2] - together with RPM fines levied against Phonak in October 2009 (€4.2 million) and Microsoft in April (€9 million). It is also the only RPM decision the FCO published in 2009. Key findings - in light of recent EU precedents and the ongoing revision of the EU Vertical Block Exemption - are summarized and discussed below. I. FACTS CIBA is Germany's market leader in the wholesale supply of contact lenses. Between 2005 and 2008,
Share on
|
|
The German Competition Authority fines a contact lens provider €11.5 million for fixing minimum resale prices and restricting the Internet and wholesale sales of its products (CIBA Vision)
Access to this article is restricted to subscribers
Already Subscribed? Sign-in
Access to this article is restricted to subscribers.
Read one article for free
Sign-up to read this article for free and discover our services.
