online retailer

Agreements to block parallel imports

According to the Age today, a number of (fashion) importers have agreed with their overseas manufacturers that the manufacturers will not supply orders to online purchasers in Australia:

Importers close door on overseas online stores by Rachel Wells.

The Gerry Harvey-esque arguments about how GST makes local retailers uncompetitive get a run again but, as previously noted, Prof. Gans is not convinced by that (in the context of digital downloads).

This announcement seems like particularly good timing given Senator Conroy’s plans to have somebody inquire into something.

Maybe this is not exclusive dealing in contravention of s 47 of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 because does not have the purpose, and it is not likely to have the effect, of substantially lessening competition, but:

(a) I hope they talked to the lawyers before they started making what might be thought of as “admissions”; and

(b) the record companies didn’t get away with the argument.

I guess we can look forward to some further instalments in this story.

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boohoo.com v missboo.co.uk

Warren J has granted an interim injunction to Wasabi Frog restraining until trial the operation of an online clothing retailer.

Wasabi Frog has traded since 2006 as an online retailer of young women’s fashion at Boo Hoo and Boohoo.com. It also has CTMs for BOO HOO, BOOHOO.COM and BOO.

missboo.co.uk started up in September 2009 as an online retailer of women’s fashion, targetting the same demographic: 17 to 25 year olds.

His Lordship found a triable issue on likelihood of confusion on the basis of a number of factors. One involved another player in the fashion industry apparently mistaking the applicant for the defendant.

Interestingly, another was the inferences to be drawn by traffic that Wasabi Frog generated after purchasing the Google Ad Words “Miss Boo”. Other aspects considered included the similarities in the respective companies’ websites and the “very very savvy” target markets of both companies.

Damages were clearly not an adequate remedy for Wasabi Frog, all the more so as the defendant was impecunious.

Wasabi Frog Ltd v Miss Boo Ltd [2009] EWHC 2767 (Ch)

Lid dip: Peter A Clarke

boohoo.com v missboo.co.uk Read More »

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