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France: Nestle aggression against knockoffs lands bitter fine

By  |  June 10, 2014

French regulators have ordered Swiss conglomerate Nestle to pay more than $675 million plus legal fees to competitor Ethical Coffee following findings that Nestle acted unfairly against Ethical for making knock-off coffee capsules.

Nestle’s Nespresso, which is Europe’s largest single-serving coffee maker, had fought back against Ethical Coffee and other rivals for making coffee capsules that work in Nespresso machines. According to reports, as Nespresso patents expire, the coffee firm continues to lose its grip on the market.

In a statement, Nestle said it was “disappointed” and vowed to appeal the ruling that found the company acted anti-competitively against Ethical; Ethical accused Nestle of operating a smear campaign against its rivals.

Full content: Irish Times

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