공정거래법상 브랜드 가치 보호의 한계에 관한 연구 - 선별적 유통시스템을 중심으로 -

Abstract

Selective distribution system is a system that has been developed in the EU for the purposes of protecting brand image of luxury products and/or providing high-end customer services. It can be summarized as a system by which the supplier may appoint its distributors based on certain criteria such as the hiring of professional staff members, the investments in interior/exteriors, the location and the appropriateness of the relevant shop and its name, etc., and such approved distributors may resell the relevant products only to other approved distributors and/or end-users. In this regard, there have been a number of cases in which the EU courts considered the legality of restrictions on the use of a variety of distribution channels such as big marts and online marketplaces, and in particular with respect to online marketplaces, there are some recent discussions on how a ban on the use of same shall be assessed under EU competition law. On the other hand, since the Monopoly Regulation and Fair Trade Act (the “MRFTA”) has not adopted such system to date, relatively there is a lack of sufficient remedies to protect the brand image of luxury products in Korea. Against this backdrop, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (the “KFTC”) recently declared an act to preclude distributors from transacting with online marketplaces and big marts to constitute an unfair customer restriction under the MRFTA. In this regard, in reviewing the legality of such restrictions on the use of sales channels, it is worth considering the relevant EU court precedents and recent discussions regarding how such restrictions shall be assessed in terms of restricting competition. Based on the foregoing, this article is aimed at reviewing the protection of brand image and its limitation under the MRFTA.