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ARTICLE · 14 SEPTEMBER 2022

Exclusive dealing: why blocking a competitors ice creams cost $12 million

Stacks Law Firm
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Peters had a secret deal to distribute only their ice creams to petrol stations and convenience stores across Australia.

AustraliaAntitrust/Competition Law
Geoff Baldwin
Geoff Baldwin
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You pull up at a petrol station to fill up. The kids cry out for ice cream. One wants a Creamy Classic Choc Top Salted Caramel. The other wants a Mango Lime Ripple Pure Pop. You return with ice creams in hand, but not the two they wanted. Sorry kids, all they had was the honeycomb Maxibon and a lemonade Icy Pole. Tears and unhappy kids in the back seat. You are a failure as a parent.

What the family didn't know was that they were the victims of anti-competitive conduct involving exclusive dealing, which is a breach of competition and consumer law.

What is exclusive dealing?

Exclusive dealing occurs when one person trading with another imposes some restrictions on the other's freedom to choose with whom, in what, or where they deal. It breaches the Competition and Consumer Act when such restrictions have the purpose, effect or likely effect of substantially lessening competition.

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