Ratio Decidendi
Price-fixing through indirect information exchange (hub and spoke) constitutes an anti-competitive agreement under the Competition Act 1998. A retailer who communicates pricing information through a common supplier participates in a concerted practice.
Facts
Argos and Littlewoods were found to have indirectly exchanged pricing information on toys and games through a common supplier, Hasbro.
Judgment Summary
The Court of Appeal upheld the Competition Appeal Tribunal's finding of price-fixing. The indirect exchange of future pricing intentions through a common supplier constituted a concerted practice.
Key Quotes
"The communication of future pricing intentions between competitors through a common supplier is capable of constituting a concerted practice."
— Arden LJ
Subsequent Treatment
Applied in subsequent hub-and-spoke cartel cases.