Tesco Lotus ordered to pay Bt4mn damage compensation to Big C group
The Civil Court today ruled that Tesco Lotus is guilty in violation of the Article 421 of the Civil Code, following two major marketing campaigns years ago.
The court also awarded the damage compensation of Bt2.46 million to Big C Supercentre and Bt1.5 million to Cencar.
The case was a victory to Big C Supercentre and Cencar, its shareholder, which brought the case to the court on August 15, 2011. In the civil lawsuit against Ek-Chai Distribution System, which operates Tesco Lotus, both companies said that Tesco Lotus committed unfair trade practices and interference with business of others by openly conducting two major marketing campaigns on separate occasions that were based on unauthorised uses of logos, marketing tools and marketing mechanisms belonging to Big C without proper consent and authorisation with the aim to generate sales and increase Tesco’s customer database at Big C’s expenses.
“Big C respects the Court’s verdict and hopes that this case shall be a case study on the standard and proper conduct of marketing that all companies should adhere to for the long-term benefits of the consumers,” Big C said in a statement.
It also hopes that the outcome of this case will lead to the enactment of Trade Competition Act for the first time since 1999 – which would reflect the important role of Trade Competition Act in the promotion of competition through business conducts that are fair, creative, positive and respectful to business peers in the future. It hopes that the Trade Competition Committee will take the Civil Court's ruling on this case into consideration when it deliberates the case.
