Competition Commission of India probes industry bodies for possible ad cartelisation
Competition Commission of India (CCI) is investigating whether the guidelines and advisories issued by industry bodies Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA), Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and Indian Broadcasting & Digital Foundation (IBDF) violated competition laws and promoted cartelisation in the advertising industry, according to probe-related documents seen by ET.
The investigation was initiated following an August 2024 order by the CCI allowing its director-general to conduct a probe after receiving complaints about possible cartelisation in the advertising industry.
The antitrust watchdog on March 18 and 19 searched the premises of these organisations and seized documents. In its application in February seeking approval for the search from a Delhi court, the CCI observed that the allegations pertain to the conduct, guidelines and advisories of these associations, which operate at different levels of the same supply chain.
«The commission also observed that the conduct of each of them could potentially impact other participants in the supply chain. Thus, the respective industry association appears to evolve guidelines, advisories, or negotiation parameters in the form of model agreements, to secure the commercial interest(s) of their members,» it said.
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Specifically, the CCI is scrutinising the ISA's Model Agency Agreement for allegedly restricting negotiations between advertisers and agencies. According to the complaints, the ISA introduced the model agreement on August 3,
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