Luxury Brands Get EU Court Boost in Fight of Internet Sales
- Brand curbs that seek to preserve image may not breach rules
- EU court aide’s opinion may hamper antitrust action on sales
Luxury-brand owners including cosmetic giant Coty Inc. should be able to block retailers from reselling their products on platforms such as EBay Inc. and Amazon.com Inc., an adviser to the bloc’s top court said.
Brands aren’t breaking antitrust rules if the prestige image of their products require them to be sold in selected stores and if those retailers are chosen in a fair way, Advocate General Nils Wahl of the EU Court of Justice said in a non-binding opinion Wednesday. The Luxembourg-based court follows such advice, at least in part, in most cases.