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Production hall in Mannheim: Coca-Cola is satisfied with the outcome
Photo: Andreas Arnold / dpa
In the dispute over the purchase prices between the beverage manufacturer Coca-Cola and Edeka, the grocer has now had to step back: The Hamburg Regional Court lifted the injunction of September 8th and in its judgment rejected Edeka's demand for a delivery stop ban Court spokesman for the dpa said.
Edeka announced that it would decide on further legal steps after examining the reasoning behind the judgement.
Coca-Cola was satisfied with the court decision.
Coca-Cola increased its retail prices in September, but Edeka did not want to pay them.
As a result, Coca-Cola announced that it would stop supplying the chain – and ultimately stopped supplying.
Price comparison with beer is not enough
In the opinion of the competent chamber, Edeka has not made it sufficiently credible that the prices charged by Coca-Cola deviate significantly from those that would most likely result from effective competition.
The comparison of the percentage price increases made by Edeka with a view to a Coca-Cola competitor and the comparison with the price development of beer and mixed beer drinks is not sufficient for this.
At the beginning of September, when the temporary injunction was issued, the court saw the situation differently and prohibited Coca-Cola from stopping deliveries.
At that time, the court assumed that Coca-Cola was abusing a dominant position in the market by setting the price and enforcing it with the help of a delivery stop and that it was behaving in violation of antitrust law.
"We are still convinced of this rating," said an Edeka spokesman.
Edeka has been in tough negotiations with the branded goods industry for months and examines every price increase very carefully.
"Many of the price increase demands put forward are not based on real cost increases." Instead, the reference to general inflation is used as a welcome argument to further improve one's own profit margin, said the spokesman.
Coca-Cola, on the other hand, was satisfied.
"Edeka's claim that the price increase was inadmissible or disproportionate was thus invalidated and rejected," said Vice President Andrea Weckwert, who is responsible for legal issues.
From Coca-Cola's point of view, the court decision is trend-setting for future price negotiations.
This also means that manufacturers only deliver products to customers who accept the applicable prices - just as retailers claim to take products out of their range in order to emphasize their demands.
ani/dpa
