The Philippine Competition Commission signed a partnership with SM Prime Holdings to raise awareness on fair competition.

pcc sm 09172024

Andrea Taguines

ABS-CBN News

<div><br/></div><div><br/></div><p>MANILA - The Philippine Competition Commission (PCC) signed a partnership with SM Prime Holdings Inc. (SMPHI) on Tuesday in a bid to raise awareness on fair competition among the public and business establishments.</p><p>As part of the Memorandum of Cooperation, SMPHI will launch a nationwide information campaign about the PCC’s mandate and the benefits of fair competition which will be featured across its 86 malls. This includes cinema ads, in-mall LED screens, and digital mall directories.</p><p>PCC Chairperson Michael Aguinaldo said SMPHI also committed to providing seminars to its employees and tenants for the next two years.</p><p>“It will also appoint a Competition Compliance Officer who will work with the PCC in coming up with a compliance program for SM and who will be the point person for any competition-related concerns. This will, in effect, provide an opportunity for SM to correct itself, in case there are any anti-competitive practices before it goes to the level of an actual case,” said Aguinaldo.</p><p>“We hope other members of the SM Group, other conglomerates, and even smaller businesses follow suit and establish compliance programs,” he added.</p><div><strong>IT STARTED WITH A BOTTLED WATER</strong></div><p>According to Aguinaldo, the partnership was proposed by SMPHI after it was flagged for only having its own brand of bottled water on sale in food stalls and food kiosks across SM malls.</p><p>“Our Competition Office, they do monitoring and they noticed there was a comment, I think, on social media where they were saying that bakit daw yung mga food cart and food kiosk, SM Bonus lang ang binebentang bottled water? They took that cue and they went and checked. Uy, yun nga, totoo nga,” said Aguinaldo.</p><p>Aguinaldo noted that this has since been corrected.</p><p>“When they looked into it, and SM was informed of that process, they said, okay, how do we fix this? What can we do?” he said.</p><p>“Now, if you go to the kiosks or carts, I think they sell more than just Bonus. They sell other brands na rin and we can verify that. And I think that’s the important thing— that we’re able to influence their behavior in that way that they become compliant,” he added.</p><p>Aguinaldo also welcomed the opportunity the further educate the public and businesses alike about what constitutes as anti-competitive practices, given what he described as the relative newness of the Philippine Competition Act, which was passed in 2015.</p><p>“We do have an understanding that some parties aren’t aware that some things they’ve been doing in the past ay mali pala o bawal na ngayon. We consider that also when we talk with them and investigate them,” he said.</p><p>Aguinaldo said the PCC is now also looking into ways to incentivize the private sector to comply with competition regulations.</p><p>Aguinaldo added that he hopes the information campaign will also empower Filipinos to spot anti-competitive practices and report them to the antitrust body.</p><p>For its part, the SM group said it is proud to join forces with the PCC in promoting fair trade practices.</p><p>“SM Supermalls believes that fair market competition will lead to a vibrant and inclusive economy, and advance consumer welfare. It likewise shares the PCC’s vision that fair market competition serves the interest of consumers by allowing them to exercise their right of choice over goods and services offered in the market,” said Assistant Vice President for Operations Ian Mathay.</p><div><br/></div>

<p>The Philippine Competition Commission signed a partnership with SM Prime Holdings to raise awareness on fair competition.</p>

PCC partners with SM Supermalls to promote fair competition after bottled water episode | ABS-CBN

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PCC partners with SM Supermalls to promote fair competition after bottled water episode

PCC partners with SM Supermalls to promote fair competition after bottled water episode

Andrea Taguines,

ABS-CBN News

Published Sep 17, 2024 04:36 PM PHT

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Philippine Competition Commission

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