Competition Commission of India (CCI) has imposed a penalty of Rs.41,393/- on M/s Tamilnadu Film Exhibitors™ Association (TNFEA) (now known as Tamilnadu Theatre Owners™ Association). The penalty has been imposed in respect of information filed by M/s Reliance Big Entertainment Pvt. Ltd(RBEPL) alleging contravention of the provisions of Section 3 and 4 of the Competition Act.
In its information, M/s RBEPL has alleged that it was entitled to distribute a film titled ˜Osthe™ in Tamil language that was a remake of Hindi film Dabang. However, M/s TNFEA boycotted this film with an effort to secure a claim of its members against a third party M/s Sun TV.
CCI in its investigation concluded that the decisions and conduct of TNFEA in respect of the boycott against film ˜Osthe™ and other films dealt by Sun TV were in contravention of the provisions of Section 3(3)(b).
The penalty of Rs.41,393/- has been imposed @ 10% of the average turnover of the Association for the relevant last three years. This penalty is to be deposited within 60 days of receipt of this order. CCI has also directed M/s TNFEA to cease and desist from indulging in such anti-competitive conduct in future.
