The German competition authority (BKA) reports that the Bundesgerichtshof, the Federal Court of Justice, has ruled Asics could not issue blanket bans preventing its dealers from using price comparison engines. As described by the BKA, the decision issued on Dec. 12 and published on Jan. 19 means that per se prohibitions that are not tied to quality requirements are illegal. The Court found that the infringement of competition law was so obvious that no hearing was required for further clarification and that the case need not be submitted to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the BKA added. If anybody detects a triumphant undertone, that may be because the federal court's ruling backs up a decision issued by the BKA in 2015, when it found that clauses restricting the use of price comparison engines inadmissibly restricted competition to the detriment of consumers. The BKA's ruling was followed by the higher regional court in Düsseldorf. Asics appealed, which led to the federal court ruling, but in the meantime the company adjusted its distribution contracts in 2015 to allow for price comparison engines. The ruling comes just a few weeks after the ECJ opined that Coty, which sells perfumes and cosmetics, may prohibit its dealers from selling its goods on online marketplaces, under specific conditions. As reported by the BKA, the German federal court made a reference to this ruling and apparently holds the view that, in contrast with the cosmetics involved in the Coty case, sports and running shoes are not luxury goods. Other views on the latest ruling and its repercussions will be covered in the next issue.

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