Swatch Group, Citizen Watch Investigated by Italian Competition Authority Over Pricing Practices

Core Viewpoint - The Swatch Group and Citizen Watch are under investigation by the Italian Competition Authority for potentially violating EU regulations regarding pricing practices, specifically for imposing retail prices on authorized distributors [1][4]. Group 1: Investigation Details - The Italian branches of both Swatch and Citizen were inspected on December 3 by the competition authority, with assistance from the Special Antitrust Unit of the Italian financial police [2]. - Citizen is accused of instructing its selective distribution network to adhere to imposed retail prices and monitoring pricing practices, potentially adopting retaliatory measures against non-compliant distributors [2][3]. - Swatch is similarly suspected of imposing retail prices and monitoring its distribution network, also adopting retaliatory measures against distributors that do not comply [4]. Group 2: Company Responses - A spokesperson for the Swatch Group confirmed the inspections and stated that the company is fully cooperating with the investigation to clarify the potential violation related to its brands Tissot Italy and Mido Italy [5]. Group 3: Industry Context - This investigation is part of a broader scrutiny of pricing practices by luxury brands in Europe, with previous cases including Gucci, Loewe, and Chloé, which were fined a total of 157 million euros for anticompetitive pricing practices [6]. - Rolex faced a fine of 91.6 million euros in 2023 for prohibiting its authorized distributors from selling online at higher prices for over a decade [7].