FISITA is committed to ensuring competition law compliance at all FISITA meetings and events.
This Policy applies to FISITA staff and to all participants in FISITA meetings and events.
1. Main Principles
FISITA does not intervene in the pricing or purchasing policies of its members. No discussion of this type, in any form whatsoever, is authorized. Commercial policies are, and remain the sole responsibility of companies.
FISITA points out that competition law prohibits any decision or practice aimed in particular at:
a) directly or indirectly fix purchase or sale prices or other transaction conditions,
b) limit or control production, outlets, technical development or investment,
c) allocate markets or sources of supply,
d) apply unequal conditions to equivalent services, thereby placing business partners at a competitive disadvantage.
2. Conduct of meetings
The following principles must be observed for all meetings (committees/working groups, including by telephone or video-conference), whether internal or external to FISITA:
FISITA staff and members shall oppose any discussion that does not comply with competition rules and business secrecy. Notably, they must not exchange commercially sensitive information (e.g. prices, customer lists, production costs, quantities, turnovers, sales, capacities, qualities, marketing plans, risks, investments, technologies and R&D programmes and their results, market shares, import and export figures).
a) They must express their opposition and leave the meeting if prohibited exchanges are discussed or persist.
b) Meetings are convened within a reasonable period of time, specifying the agenda.
c) An attendance list must be retained.
d) Minutes of the meeting are sent to participants within a reasonable time.
3. Exchange of information and statistics within FISITA
Exchanges of information are not illegal provided they do not hinder free competition. Under no circumstances may the information collected be used to reconstitute a market or cost price or, in general, to align behaviour.
