All Legal & Institutional articles – Page 9
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Article
Novartis, Roche, Genentech fined €444.85 million in France in AMD treatment case
The French competition authority, Autorité de la concurrence, has fined the pharmaceutical groups Novartis, Roche and Genentech, a combined €444.85 million for abuse of dominant position to impose the use of the drug Lucentis over its cheaper alternative Avastin in the treatment of age-related macular degeneration (AMD). Genentech, which is ...
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ArticleEssilux to appeal Dutch court ruling on GrandVision
EssilorLuxottica has decided to file an appeal against a judgment dismissing its request for disclosure of information from GrandVision. The company repeated that it is concerned about GrandVision’s behavior in “continuing to deny access to important information” related to its handling of the Covid-19 outbreak. “Legal proceedings, including the appeal, ...
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ArticleEssilorLuxottica ready to pursue lawsuit against GrandVision after losing first round
Yesterday, a Dutch district court rejected EssilorLuxottica’s request to obtain information from GrandVision to determine whether the Dutch retailer had breached the terms an agreement in view of its takeover by Essilux. The court said that the large volume of corporate information that Essilux is seeking to obtain without specific ...
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ArticleGerman optics industry calls for stripped-down free trade deal between U.K., EU
Spectaris, the German industry association for optics, photonics, analysis and medical technology based in Berlin, called for a “stripped-down” free trade agreement between the U.K. and the European Union to avoid the parties failing to strike a deal, which would lead to a so-called hard Brexit. “Better a stripped-down free ...
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ArticleABG, SPARC picked to buy Brooks Brothers for $325 million
The iconic American apparel group Brooks Brothers has selected Authentic Brands Group (ABG) and its partially owned retail unit SPARC as the winning bidders of a competitive sale process after they increased their offer to $325 million for the vast majority of the company’s global business operations as a going ...
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ArticleEssilorLuxottica has secured trade data held by GrandVision
EssilorLuxottica has secured information stored on servers managed by GrandVision in connection with legal proceedings involving the two companies. The Dutch eyewear retailer said that the measure was handled by an unamed independent third party. A backup of the information will be held by the third party until there is ...
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ArticleGrandVision starts arbitration proceedings against EssilorLuxottica
GrandVision has initiated arbitration proceedings against EssilorLuxottica’s claims that the Dutch retailer had breached its obligations under the co-called “Support Agreement” in managing its business during the Covid-19 pandemic. GrandVision reiterated that it strongly disagrees with EssilorLuxottica’s accusations. It added that it has initiated the arbitration to obtain confirmation that ...
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News briefs
EU sees trade deal with U.K. as unlikely
Michel Barnier, the European Union’s chief negotiator for Brexit, said he views the possibility of reaching an agreement by the end of the year with the U.K. on the parties’ future trade relations as unlikely, following a new round of inconclusive talks in London. Barnier said there had been little ...
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ArticleEU suspends deadline for probe into Essilux’s takeover of GrandVision
The European Commission has suspended the deadline for the end of an in-depth investigation into EssilorLuxottica’s proposed €7.2 billion takeover of GrandVision, according to a filing on its website. The commission has repeatedly postponed the deadline. The last one being August 27. The proposed deal, referred to as case M.9569, ...
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ArticleCirillo Marcolin takes over presidency of Confindustria Moda
As planned, Cirillo Marcolin has taken over the rotating presidency of Confindustria Moda, the umbrella organization of the Italian fashion industry, replacing Claudio Marenzi. Confindustria Moda comprises Sistema Moda Italia (SMI), which groups the textile and apparel firms operating in the country; Assocalzaturifici, the shoemakers’ association; Assopellettieri, formerly called Aimpes, ...
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ArticleEssilorLuxottica sues GrandVision over Covid-19 disclosure
EssilorLuxottica has initiated legal proceedings before a district court in Rotterdam to obtain information from GrandVision regarding the management of its business during the Covid-19 pandemic and the extent to which it has allegedly ”breached its obligations under the support agreement.” The Franco-Italian eyewear company, which made a €7.2 ...
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ArticleEU may ask Essilux to sell stores in GrandVision deal
The European Commission may ask EssilorLuxottica to sell stores in Italy and another EU country, either France or the Netherlands, to secure its planned 7.2 billion euro acquisition of GrandVision, according to the newspaper Financial Times. But the company has not yet committed to selling shops as it argues that ...
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News briefs
Germany increases funding for industrial research
Following lobbying by the German industry association Spectaris and other groups, the German government has agreed to increase by €50 million funds destined to corporate industrial research to a total of €300.6 million. The money is part of a stimulus package to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. Spectaris’s ...
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ArticleThe EU extends deadline for Essilux-GrandVision probe to Aug. 20
Once again the the European Commission has pushed back the deadline for completion of its in-depth anti-trust investigation into EssilorLuxottica’s planned €7.2 billion takeover of GrandVision, according to a filing on its website. The deadline was postponed by a week, or five working days, to Aug. 20 from Aug. 13 ...
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OpinionAmazon and other marketplaces may be in for a reckoning over illegal sales
Why the sale of illegal products through online platforms could become a problem for Amazon and other marketplaces – and why the widespread circumvention of EU competition law may soon be over
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News briefs
Novacel joins AsnaV
Novacel, the lens laboratory that was Covid-19 certified last month, has recently become a member of the French Association pour l’Amélioration de la Vue (AsnaV), joining Essilor France, BBGR and Transitions in the lens makers’ member group. Founded in 1954, AsnaV is a non-profit organization that brings the French eyewear ...
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News briefs
A new register for historic trademarks in Italy
A special register for “historic trademarks of national interest” has been created in Italy. Registration in the new inventory is open to trademarks that have been registered for at least 50 years. For an unregistered trademark, the applicant must prove that the trademark has been in continuous use for at ...
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News briefs
Euro area wage decline limited at 7% during lockdown
The decline in labour income was limited at 7 percent in the euro area during coronavirus-related lockdowns thanks to short-time work and temporary lay-off schemes introduced in various member states of the monetary union, according to a survey released by the European Central Bank (ECB). The ECB notes that the ...
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ArticleItaly considering a €50 voucher to buy eyeglasses, contact lenses
The Italian government is expected to examine a proposal put forward by the non-profit organization Commissione Difesa Vista (CDV) to distribute by the end of the year to Italian taxpayers a €50 voucher to buy eyeglasses or contact lenses. CDV promotes vision and eye health and was founded by trade ...
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News briefs
Gifo and Silmo send 50,000 face shields to opticians
Gifo, the French eyewear industry association, will provide optical shops with a total of 50,000 face shields, in partnership with the organizers of the Silmo eyewear show. The operation is aimed at supporting the country’s opticians that reopened their businesses on May 11, after almost two months of lockdown where ...
