Fair Trade Commission Rejects Consent Order Application for "Samsung Welstory Unfair Support" Due to Unmet Requirements

[Asia Economy Reporter Joo Sang-don] The Fair Trade Commission (FTC) dismissed Samsung's request for a consent decree regarding the unfair support practices of Samsung Welstory on the 3rd.

On this day, the FTC announced that it had decided the previous day to dismiss the application to initiate the consent decree procedure related to the unfair support practices of Samsung Welstory involving four companies, including Samsung Electronics.

So far, the FTC's secretariat (equivalent to the prosecution) has been investigating allegations that four companies, including Samsung Electronics, directed 100% of their in-house meal supply volume to Samsung Welstory and supported Samsung Welstory through favorable transaction conditions.

Accordingly, on the 12th of last month, five companies?Samsung Electronics, Samsung Display, Samsung Electro-Mechanics, Samsung SDI, and Samsung Welstory?applied for the consent decree procedure concerning the unfair support practices of Samsung Welstory.

The consent decree system is a mechanism where a business operator voluntarily proposes reasonable corrective measures such as restoration to the original state and relief for consumers or trading partners, and if the FTC recognizes the validity of these measures after collecting opinions from stakeholders, the case is promptly closed without determining whether a violation occurred.

Regarding Samsung's consent decree application, the FTC held two plenary meetings on the 26th of last month and the 2nd of this month. The first review addressed the main issue, and the second morning session reviewed whether to initiate the consent decree procedure.

According to the FTC, Samsung proposed corrective measures such as opening in-house cafeterias primarily to small and medium-sized enterprises. Additionally, Samsung proposed a total of 200 billion KRW in mutual growth support, including 30 billion KRW over the next five years to support smart factory construction and the establishment of a 150 billion KRW mutual growth fund.

An FTC official explained, "We decided not to initiate the consent decree procedure because the applicants' submissions did not meet the requirements for starting the consent decree process."

The FTC plans to resume negotiations soon and make a final decision on the Samsung Welstory unfair support case.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.