McDonald's Antitrust Probe in Italy Is Dropped by Regulator -- Update
June 30 2022 - 10:18AM
Dow Jones News
By Mauro Orru
Italy's competition watchdog has closed a probe into McDonald's
Corp. on alleged abuse of market dominance against its franchisees
in the country, saying it was satisfied with changes the
Chicago-based fast-food chain had made to its contractual
standards.
The Italian Competition Authority, or AGCM, said Thursday that
McDonald's Development Italy LLC had significantly altered its
approach on how it handles the pre-contractual phase, giving
potential new franchisees more visibility on obligations and
commitments in agreements they are going to sign, while also
reducing costs for training.
The regulator opened its probe in July last year, saying it
suspected the company's handling of the pre-contractual phase took
away negotiating power and alternative choices from prospective
franchisees, thus stifling competition.
"The authority found MCDI's proposed commitments adequate to
remove competition concerns related to all the profiles of abuse of
economic dependence alleged in the opening proceedings," the
watchdog said.
In a statement, McDonald's Italian business said that dialogue
with the regulator had "allowed the company to fully illustrate the
correctness of its franchise model".
Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com; @MauroOrru94
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
June 30, 2022 10:03 ET (14:03 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2022 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
McDonalds (NYSE:MCD)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
McDonalds (NYSE:MCD)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024