Catering agreements / Beer supply agreements II
An article about catering agreements was recently published in this series of articles. This article discussed a decision by the Netherlands Competition Authority (NMa) regarding the beer supply agreements submitted by Heineken for exemption.
Apparently there is a lot going on in “beer country”. On 13 June 2002, the preliminary relief judge of the District Court of Amsterdam rendered a judgment regarding the alleged anti-competitive nature of a beer supply contract. The Amsterdam Court of Appeal also ruled on this on appeal, which judgment was rendered on 31 October 2002. In the following, this will be explained.
This involved a dispute between Grolsch on the one hand and the student society called Lanx on the other. The parties had entered into a beer supply agreement with each other for a period of 10 years. This agreement was still entered into under the old Block Exemption Regulation 1984/83. Given the entry into force of the new Block Exemption Regulation on vertical agreements dated 1 June 2000, Grolsch proposed to the Lanx student association to amend the current agreement in accordance with the new regulations.
The new Block Exemption Regulation had the effect that an exclusive purchase obligation was made possible in a specific way. However, Lanx refused to accept this adjustment as it believed that the exclusive purchase was contrary to Article 6 of the Competition Act (Mw) and Article 81 EC. Both the preliminary relief judge in Amsterdam and the Court of Appeal in Amsterdam do not follow Lanx’s reasoning. However, both authorities do this on different grounds. The Interim Relief Judge reached this judgment on the basis of the fact that it is of the opinion that there would be no appreciable anti-competitive agreements now that Grolsch’s market share on the Dutch market for the sale of beer via the on-trade is only around 10%. . The Amsterdam Court of Appeal, on the other hand, follows a different reasoning, namely that the beer supply agreements fall under the old Block Exemption Regulation for exclusive purchasing agreements and the new Block Exemption Regulation for vertical agreements. This is in view of the fact that both Block Exemption Regulations offer the possibility of an exclusive purchasing obligation for an indefinite period, provided that the beer is sold in a building that has been given over to the buyer by the supplier.
On that basis, the Court of Appeal therefore concluded that the position taken by Lanx cannot be enforced in law. The Court disregards the question of whether there is an appreciable restriction of competition. In fact, the Court follows the same reasoning as that of the NMa. The NMa was of the opinion that the exclusivity included in the beer supply agreements, as submitted by Heineken for exemption, with regard to the sale of draft beer, under which the catering company undertakes to sell only one brand of draft beer. selling was allowed. In the opinion of the NMa, this so-called in-store inter-brand competition is permitted as it will not have a foreclosure effect.
Ludwig & Van Dam franchise attorneys, franchise legal advice
![](https://ludwigvandam.megaconcept.nl/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/232court-min-400x222.jpg)
Other messages
Franchise Act passed by the House of Representatives – dated 16 June 2020 – mr. AW Dolphin
The Franchise Act was adopted by the House of Representatives on 16 June 2020.
Sandd franchisees find satisfaction in nullifying Sandd and PostNL merger – dated 12 June 2020
The franchisees of mail delivery company Sandd went to court in November, assisted by Ludwig & Van Dam Advocaten. Court of Rotterdam rules on takeover by PostNL.
Plenary debate dated June 9, 2020 in the Lower House of the Franchise Act – dated June 10, 2020 – mr. AW Dolphin
On 9 June 2020, the legislative proposal for the Franchise Act was discussed in plenary in the House of Representatives. An amendment and a motion have been tabled.
Franchising is “a bottleneck in tackling healthcare fraud” – dated 10 June 2020 – mr. AW Dolphin
According to the various supervisory authorities in the healthcare sector, franchise constructions can be seen as a non-transparent business construction in which the supervision of professional and
Article Franchiseplus: “Franchisors participate in franchisees” – dated June 3, 2020 – mr. AW Dolphin
Franchisors are increasingly participating in the franchisee's business. There are several benefits for both the franchisee and the franchisor.
Article The National Franchise Guide – “Corona discount on rent” – dated June 2, 2020 – mr. AW Dolphin
If a rental property is obliged to be closed due to corona, there may be a right to a rent reduction, according to the Northern Netherlands court.