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ARTICLE · 08 AUGUST 2013

What's Your Best Price?

Fieldfisher
Fieldfisher
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Suppliers are often faced with demands that they offer prices that are the same as, or lower than, the lowest price charged to other customers.

United KingdomAntitrust/Competition Law
John Cassels
John Cassels

Suppliers are often faced with demands that they offer prices that are the same as, or lower than, the lowest price charged to other customers. These "most favoured customer" clauses are often thought to be beneficial to competition and consumers.  However, in a number of cases, the European Commission has ordered their removal and it is now clear that they can give rise to antitrust concerns in the EU:

  • Opodo: one of the proposed features of this online travel agency (a joint venture established by nine European airlines) was that it would have access to the airlines' lowest fares made available to other online travel agencies. This created a risk of foreclosure on the travel agency market and the Commission ordered the removal of MFC status granted to Opodo by its airline shareholders. 

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