A 226.000 euro fine from the French Antitrust for violating the tariff independence of independent distributors by setting a price for the sale of its products online: this is what happened to Dammann Frères, historic transalpine tea producer which since March 2007 has been part of the stable of brands of the Italian group Illy. According to the competition authority Dammann, by pretending to limit himself to recommending prices to resellers, actually forced them to sell his products (on the Internet, not in physical shops where freedom was respected) at a pre-established price, which was the same as Dammann's online sales channel. “This primarily damaged consumers, who were unable to benefit from price competition between the various distributors,” wrote the Antitrust.
Dammann has in fact adopted restrictive policies for small distributors, penalizing them if they decide not to comply with the indications: the investigations have highlighted cancellations of orders, delays in deliveries, or even the termination of the commercial relationship against the "rebel" partners . The ultimate goal was to protect its internal e-commerce, bypassing possible competition from third-party distributors. The Dammann brand is considered particularly valuable in France: founded in 1682, it is so niche that it has only about twenty tea and infusion outlets throughout the country.
