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The European Union has issued a $366 million fine to the US confectionary giant, Mondelez after the company was accused of restricting the cross-border trade of chocolate, biscuits and coffee products within the European Union.

The EU's Competition Commissioner, Margrethe Vestager, said, “This harmed consumers, who ended up paying more for chocolate, biscuits and coffee. This case is about the price of groceries. It's a key concern to European citizens and even more obvious in times of very high inflation, where many are in a cost-of-living crisis," according to AFP.

The European Commission accused Mondelez of preventing traders from selling products between EU member states between 2015 and 2019, despite the bloc maintaining a single market intended to guarantee the free movement of goods. It pointed to 22 examples where Mondelez was found to have engaged in anticompetitive agreements or concerted practices.

Mondelez was also accused of refusing to supply a trader in Germany to prevent the resale of chocolate in Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, and Romania, "where prices were higher."

The penalty announced on Thursday is the ninth-largest antitrust fine ever issued by the EU. However, Mondelez said that "no further measures to finance the fine will be necessary." The company also said the fine related to "historical, isolated incidents, most of which ceased or were remedied well in advance of the commission's investigation," it said in a statement.

Mondelez, formerly known as Kraft, is one of the world's largest producers of chocolate, biscuits, and coffee and recorded revenue of $36 billion last year.

EU slaps Mondelez with $366 mn antitrust fine

The Delhi High Court has restrained Hindustan Unilever from engaging in marketing or advertising activity of comparing its 'Ponds' products with 'Nivea' products—either expressly or by implication or association, through sales representatives in various malls in the national capital and Gurugram.

“The Court is of the opinion that the impugned activity undertaken by the defendant choosing to compare plaintiff's 'Nivea' products (either expressly or by implication or association) and defendant's products, especially those under the trademark 'Ponds', are prima facie misleading and disparaging, and cause irreversible prejudice to plaintiff,” said Justice Anish Dayal. He observed that the activity amounts to disparagement or denigration of the latter's products or business.

The order was passed on the back of an interim injunction application filed by Beiersdorf AG, the company manufacturing Nivea products, in its suit against HUL.

As per the plaintiff, sales representatives of HUL would apply cream from the “blue tub” on the skin of the walk-in customers on one hand and Ponds product on the other hand- would then use a magnifying glass in an attempt to assure the customers that blue tub product left an oily residue on their skin as compared to Ponds Super Light Gel. To this, Justice Dayal observed that prima facie, the colour blue was certainly associated for years with the plaintiff's product 'NIVEA', which has achieved distinctiveness and has become popular.

“Plaintiff claiming exclusivity in this colour is not the issue, however, the use by defendant in the impugned activity of a blue colour tub is too much of a coincidence to ignore. The allusion seems to be to the distinctive blue colour used by plaintiff,” the court said.

It further said that there was no reason why HUL could not have used a heavy cream in a different colour tub in order to compare.

Additionally, on puffery and disparagement, the court observed that the law relating to advertisements in any form whether print, digital, or TVC will extend to in-mall marketing campaigns as well. The court reasoned that ultimately, in-mall marketing campaigns it is a method of promotion and marketing of a company's product to a consumer, in a much more personalised and interactive set-up.


HUL restrained from comparing 'Ponds' products with 'Nivea': Delhi HC

The National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) in Bengaluru issued notice in an insolvency plea filed by mobile phone manufacturer Oppo against embattled ed-tech company Byju's, as per Moneycontrol.

Apart from Oppo, two new insolvency pleas have been filed against Byju's. They were filed by US based publishing company McGraw Hill education and  end-to-end customer experience solutions company Cogent E-services. The addition of three pleas take the total number of insolvency pleas filed against Byju's to seven, as per the report. 

While Cogent E-services filed its plea as early as February 2024, MCGraw Hill and Oppo filed their plea in March, however all these three pleas were registered in the NCLT in the last one week. These cases are likely to come up for hearing in the last week of May or the first week of June.

A total of six OCs and one FC have moved the NCLT against Byju's.


Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) filed the first insolvency plea against Byju's in November 2023. The cricket board claimed that the company had defaulted on a payment of Rs 158 crore. The plea is at an advanced stage of hearing at the NCLT.



NCLT issues notice in insolvency plea filed by Oppo against Byju's

The Uttar Pradesh State Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has taken proactive measures by collecting samples from prominent eateries, including McDonald's and Theobroma, situated in Noida, as per CNBC TV18. This action follows orders by the District Magistrate (DM) to ensure the quality of food and beverages sold at outlets in the state.

This move comes after a complaint regarding possible adulteration or contamination was lodged through the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) connect portal, as per the report.

Under the leadership of Assistant Commissioner Archana Dheeran and Chief Food Safety Officer Akshay Goyal, the Food Safety Department initiated the raids, targeting prominent eateries in Noida.

One of the establishments raided was Theobroma Foods Pvt. Ltd. located at Sector 104 in Noida. During the raid, samples of Pineapple cake were collected for testing, according to sources. Simultaneously, the team also conducted a raid on the McDonald's outlet situated at Sector 16 in Noida.

The raiding team comprised Food Safety Officers Ram Naresh, Mukesh Kumar, Vijay Bahadur Patel, and others.

Currently, the UP state FDA is awaiting the results of the tests conducted on the collected samples. The outcome of these tests will determine whether further action will be taken against the implicated outlets.

McDonald's and Theobroma under scanner over quality concerns

Independent ad agency Bang In The Middle called out former client Medanta, a healthcare provider, for utilizing the agency’s campaign idea now after having rejected the same when the two were in a partnership.

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In a LinkedIn post, Bang In The Middle wrote, "We were their lead communication agency from November 22 to November 23. It wasn’t a substantial account, but we took it on as we have extensive healthcare experience. As it happens in many such relationships, the client thinks that they are lord and master and the agency a subservient slave. We presented many campaigns, most got rejected, some got translated into posts and executed by their social agency. Yeah, that is true."

The post added, "Here’s where it gets interesting. One of the campaigns that the agency presented earlier and was spitefully rejected and thrown out, has now been raised from the dead and executed as is by the client." and added, " The same layouts. The same lines. The same art. The same everything. The people who once spat on it and threw it out, have now had a change of heart, done a complete volte face, and the campaign is now live on their pages. There are many questions here." and added "One - if it was a bad thought, how is it now a good thought? Two - It’s the same team at the client’s, so how come they changed their thinking? Three - since they had rejected the agency’s campaign, how can they now gainfully use that campaign? Four - since the relationship has been terminated, how can the client pick up something that originally and intellectually belongs to agency? Five - isn’t this abject lack of professionalism, and doesn’t this smack of unlawful and unjust business practices?"

"We never wanted to take this legal or into public. But when we reached out to them to amicably settle this, they rudely told us to take a walk, and challenged us to do whatever we can, because they are a giant and we are but a pipsqueak. So what do you do when you have a problem like Medanta? Make it public and go legal. We have done both," wrote Bang In The Middle.

Bang In The Middle calls out Medanta for using rejected campaign idea

The Delhi High Court has temporarily halted the multi-cuisine restaurant chain Wow Punjabi from using a mark closely resembling that of the fast food giant Wow! Momo, Bar and Bench reported.


"Balance of convenience lies in favour of plaintiff and plaintiff is likely to suffer irreparable harm in case the injunction, as prayed for, is not granted," read the court order dated March 22.

The court session revolved around a petition filed by Wow! Momo, seeking a permanent injunction against Wow Punjabi, citing trademark infringement, passing off, unfair trade practices, and damages.


Wow! Momo emphasised its claim of originating and adopting the trademark 'Wow'/'Wow! Momo' as early as 2008, establishing itself as a prominent player in the food industry.

The plaintiff further highlighted its extensive presence, boasting over 600 outlets spread across more than 30 cities, with a brand valuation of approximately ₹1,225 crore in 2021. Notably, the company witnessed a growth rate exceeding 60% in 2022.


Additionally, Wow! Momo presented evidence of its registered trademarks utilising the 'Wow' mark, including its acquisition of the domain name ‘www.wowmomo.com’ back in 2013.

The court took cognisance of Wow Punjabi's failure to respond to both a cease and desist notice and a subsequent legal notice issued by the petitioner.

Following a thorough examination of the trademarks in question, the court concurred that Wow! Momo had established a prima facie case warranting intervention.Consequently, the court issued a notice to Wow Punjabi, restraining it from using, advertising, or engaging in any activities related to goods or services under its trademark until further orders.




Delhi High Court grants relief to Wow Momo in trademark case against Wow Punjabi

As Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh preps to hand over the department to senior bureaucrat Nidhi Khare on March 31, he spoke with CNBC-TV18 on Patanjali’s misleading advertisement, surrogate ads and more. While addressing the crackdown by the judiciary on Patanjali and misleading ads, Singh said, "We are concerned about misleading advertisements because we think that the rights of the consumers get adversely affected because you're promising something which is not there. We keep a close eye on misleading advertisements. We also work with other agencies like Advertising Standard Council of India which are a source of information for us for misleading advertisements." 

Singh added, "Overall the menace of misleading advertisement has to be curbed because under the Consumer Protection Act, it's misleading, it's an unfair trading practice and it needs to be curbed because a consumer cannot be taken for a ride."

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/brand-makers/nidhi-khare-to-be-consumer-affairs-secretary-takes-over-from-rohit-kumar-singh-25475.htm">Read more: Nidhi Khare to be Consumer Affairs secretary; takes over from Rohit Kumar Singh</a>

Singh discussed surrogate ads for alcohol and said that industries like alcohol and tobacco try to circumvent the advertising regulation, whether it is banned and they try to use it as an extension of a brand."So we say no, you have to give us details of sales. CCPA, which I chair now, has just issued an order about a week back that they have to give us the value of the advertising on the extended brand, that is what is the actual revenue they get from the sales because any normal business practice will have you advertise in proportion of the revenues of that product. So if it is out of proportion, that means the surrogate advertising is being indulged into and that's an unfair trading practice."


<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/how-it-works/asci-and-the-doca-consult-with-stakeholders-on-surrogate-ads-24121.htm">Read more: Rohit Kumar Singh, Secretary DoCA: ‘Need to halt surrogate ads’</a>

Singh also shared his view on guidelines issued to regulate social media influencers and deep fakes. He said, "It's a very tricky thing to handle because we have seen the boom in terms of influencers and social media. We have only made very simple guidelines like do's and don'ts that you have to disclose. The consumer has the right to know that this is not your fair opinion, but you have taken money to say that, " and added, "If somebody is peddling a particular protein or a particular medicine on social media, then he has to disclose his or her qualifications. Are you a doctor? Are you a nutritionist?Are you trained in this? How are you saying this? We also wrote to SEBI, and SEBI is taking a lot of action on that, that if you are giving a financial advice, then you have to have a disclaimer and that space has to be very closely regulated because especially with artificial intelligence and deep fakes happening."

Singh shared that he was in a conference with the consumer protection judges and activists in Mumbai on the World Consumer day. "One lady from Punjab, a member of one of our commissions, said she also works on the social side. There are rural women in Fazilka district who have come to her and said we saw this video where Ratan Tata is saying you invest ₹2000 in this. And we know it is deep fake and how do you prevent that?"

<a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/advertising/ccpa-and-asci-join-hands-to-strengthen-advertising-regulation-in-india-27397.htm">Read more: CCPA and ASCI join hands to strengthen advertising regulation in India</a>

"These are some of the challenges which will emerge in coming times, especially the use of deep fake, not just in investment, in elections etc. but in many other aspects. So we need to work extensively in this domain as to how the whole world is struggling with it. We also must realise that this regulation versus innovation debate is something the whole world is struggling with. If you regulate too much, then technology will not develop. If you regulate too less, then it is harmful."




Consumer Affairs Secretary Rohit Kumar Singh: "Menace of misleading ads has to be curbed"

Earlier this week, Zomato had come up with a new kind of service, catering only to the pure vegetarian customers. Zomato founder and CEO Deepinder Goyal announced the launch of the "Pure Veg mode" delivery service on Tuesday, keeping in mind the dietary preferences of its pure vegetarian customers. 

“The 'pure veg' mode can be seen as an embodiment of casteist values, where vegetarianism is often associated with purity, self-control, and higher moral standing.  This dietary preference, rooted in religious and cultural practices, has historically been used as a mechanism to maintain caste distinctions, with upper castes asserting their superiority and 'purity' through their vegetarian diet. The designation of 'pure' vegetarian subtly carries the implication that anything outside this category is 'impure,' perpetuating a harmful dichotomy that mirrors and reinforces caste-based notions of purity and pollution,” said Akshay CM, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion consultant in a LinkedIn post.

He further said that this segregation goes beyond personal choice or business acumen; it taps into the age-old casteist belief that vegetarian food must be protected from contamination by non-vegetarian food, which is often associated with lower caste practices.  Zomato goes further in its segregation by establishing a 'pure veg fleet', identifiable by green shirts, designated exclusively for deliveries from 'pure' vegetarian restaurants.  
 Akshay pointed out that it's likely that Zomato's move will reinforce stigma and marginalization faced by minorities in the country. “Will Zomato's policy preferentially employ individuals who adhere to vegetarian diets for its 'pure veg' fleet ? Can a Dalit or a Muslim worker gain entry to this fleet ?This scenario would not only affect the economic opportunities for those who are non-vegetarian, often belonging to lower-caste groups, but also reinforce the stigma and marginalization they face.”

“Deepinder Goyal, with your policy, you risk emboldening right-wing housing societies to ban Zomato delivery personnel in red shirts. How will you protect them from potential attacks, especially in these charged communal times? Are you prepared to take responsibility for their occupational segregation and the dangers they may face? By pandering to and institutionalizing the caste-based preferences of a segment of the population, Zomato is complicit in perpetuating the very structures of caste that many are striving to dismantle,”read an excerpt from the same LinkedIn post.

Deepinder Goyal, founder, Zomato  took to his social media account to share views on the issue. “While we are going to continue to have a fleet for vegetarians, we have decided to remove the on-ground segregation of this fleet on the ground using the colour green. All our riders — both our regular fleet, and our fleet for vegetarians, will wear the colour red. This means that the fleet meant for vegetarian orders will not be identifiable on the ground (but will show on the app that your veg orders will be served by the veg only fleet). This will ensure that our red uniform delivery partners are not incorrectly associated with non-veg food, and blocked by any RWAs or societies during any special days… our riders’ physical safety is of paramount importance to us,” he said.

“Zomato realises that even some of our customers could get into trouble with their landlords, and that would not be a nice thing if that happened because of us. Thanks everyone for talking about this last night. You made us understand the unintended consequences of this rollout. All the love, and all the brickbats were all so useful - and helped us get to this optimal point. We are always listening, without unnecessary ego, or pride. We look forward to continue serving you,” added Goyal.

Last year, Zomato faced backlash after releasing a promotional advertisement ‘Kachra can change the game’ on occasion of the World Environment Day. Kachra translates into waste and/or trash in Hindi. Zomato was attempting to show what the brand has been doing to challenge climate change. But it ended up facing tremendous backlash across social media for appropriating casteism. This called into question if brands can go to any extent to greenwash.

<strong>Read More:</strong><a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/how-it-works/zomato-withdraws-kachra-campaign-after-being-called-out-by-netizens-8826.htm" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Zomato withdraws “Kachra” campaign after being called out by netizens</a>

Zomato called out for introducing  ‘pure veg’ mode; CEO Deepinder Goyal rolls back green fleet after backlash

To cost-cut effort and address the imminent liquidity crisis, Byju’s has given up all offices across India, retaining only its headquarters at IBC, Knowledge Park, Bengaluru, as per reports.

This comes at a time when the company has been engaged in a dispute with its investors regarding the validity of the funds raised from a recently concluded rights issue offering.

As a result of the decision, the company has now mandated that all employees work from home indefinitely, except for those working out of its headquarters and approximately 300 Byju's Tuition Centres across the country.

This also comes at a time when the company has held back part of February salaries for about 75 percent of its employees. The company currently has close to 14,000 employees in India. Byju's, disbursed the payments after delaying it for about 10 days and promised to pay the balance once it is allowed to use the funds from the recently closed rights issue.

The decision to shut down all offices in the country was a part of the Byju's India CEO Arjun Mohan's restructuring plan, as per reports.

“This has been in works for over six months. The company has been shutting down offices across country as soon the lease for each expired," said a source.

The company has laid off thousands of employees in the last 12 months as it battled a double blow of drying venture capital funding and slowing demand for online learning services. Since then, its investor board members have left too, citing differences with Raveendran.

The company has tried to fix some of the problems since then. Its early investor Ranjan Pai ploughed in the capital, it set up an advisory council with veterans such as Mohandas Pai and Rajnish Kumar and elevated Arjun Mohan as CEO. It is also in talks to divest assets such as Great Learning and Epic.

BYJU's gives up all offices across India; retains only headquarters in Bengaluru

The Central Consumer Protection Authority, the regulator under the Consumer Protection Act has issued an advisory on Prohibition of Advertisements and Endorsement of Online Gambling Platforms. The advisory has been issued in the context of proliferation of advertisements promoting anti-national illegal online gambling platforms, which are increasingly been endorsed by sportspersons and actors from the Indian film industry.

Such sites pose significant financial and socio-economic risks for consumers, especially youth and children and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) has previously issued multiple advisories asking television channels, digital news publishers and OTT platforms to refrain from showing advertisements for online gambling sites and surrogate advertisements.

The All India Gaming Federation, the apex Industry body for online gaming has been highlighting this menace since 2018 and has been at the forefront in providing all relevant information to all government bodies and ministries.

Lauding the move to issue the advisory, Roland Landers, CEO, All India Gaming Federation said, “We are grateful to the Government for taking such a decisive step against anti-national illegal offshore gambling websites, which have been advertising in India in the garb of surrogate news and sports websites. AIGF has been highlighting this menace since 2018, and has been constantly taking up these issues with various Central Ministries and also providing evidence of uninterrupted advertising on major Indian OTT, satellite channels, newspapers and as sponsors in multiple Indian sports leagues. We will continue to monitor this and report any infraction to the Government. We hope that unlike earlier the TV networks, OTTs and news publishers will take this advisory seriously and not support these anti-national websites and give them prime-time airspace.”

The advisory noted that gambling is strictly prohibited under Indian law and is illegal in the majority of the country. Despite this, online gambling sites and apps persist in advertising gambling directly, as well as under the guise of gaming. 
Mr. Landers further added, “This will also help is distinguishing legitimate Indian online skill gaming operators, which provide the highest player protection measures and are a form of entertainment against these illegal gambling sites which are the main reason for widespread consumer harm and problems.”


<strong>Read More:</strong> <a href="https://www.storyboard18.com/how-it-works/online-gaming-surpassed-filmed-entertainment-in-india-touched-rs-220-billion-in-2023-25500.htm">Online gaming surpassed filmed entertainment in India, touched Rs 220 billion in 2023</a> 


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