COMPETITION COUNCIL – ADVERTISING OF VP MARKET RECOGNISED AS MISLEADING

The Lithuanian Competition Council, having in its meeting examined the findings of the investigation launched with a view to establishing the compliance of the advertising statements with the requirements of the Law on Advertising, passed the resolution in respect of the matter considered. Acting in accordance with the requirements of the Law on Advertising the Competition Council recognised the statement published by UAB VP Market „Maxima - pigiausias prekybos tinklas Lietuvoje“ („Maxima – the cheapest trade network in Lithuania”) to constitute misleading advertising and obligated the company to immediately discontinue the use of the misleading advertising. UAB VP Market was fined LTL 19,500 for the infringement of the Law on Advertising.

The investigation was started upon the receipt of the application from UAB Palink. The Competition Council had also received complaints from consumers indicating that the advertising statement by UAB VP Market „Maxima – the cheapest trade network in Lithuania“ had mislead them. The investigation established that prior to publishing this advertising statement the company VP Market made a revaluation of goods in its stores Maxima so that the goods were priced at the levels on average lower than at other competitors. In the opinion of the Competition Council the price reduction to the levels below those of the competitors' did not provide sufficient grounds to declare that Maxima was the cheapest trade network in Lithuania. Furthermore, the collected evidence confirmed that at the time of the advertising selected goods in the Maxima network stores were not necessarily the cheapest.

The Competition Council concluded that by disseminating the advertising statement „Maxima is the cheapest network in Lithuania“, the company VP Market was misleading the consumers and was inducing their economic behaviour. Since the price is one of the main criteria for consumers when selecting goods or services, the advertising statement in question could made the consumer expect that at any store of the Maxima network, he may acquire any item at the price lower than in any other store of Lithuania not belonging to the Maxima network.