Ukrainian Beverage Manufacturer Fined for Unfair Competition

The Ukrainian Antimonopoly Committee has recently imposed a fine of approximately EUR 14,000 (USD 17,000) on the Ukrainian beverage manufacturer Dnipro Alcohol for violating the Ukrainian competition protection legislation by using a confusingly similar packaging design as its competitor. Ukrainian alcoholic drinks manufacturer Strongdrink initiated the proceedings, claiming that Dnipro designed the packaging for its Petrykivska® vodka as a copy of Strongdrink’s Hlebna Sleza® vodka packaging.

During the production of Petrykivska® vodka, Dnipro used the bottle, cork, emblem and front and back labels similar to those of Strongdrink’s Hlebna Sleza®, already popular on the spirits market. The Antimonopoly Committee confirmed that the similarities between the two packaging designs were sufficient to mislead consumers with respect to the manufacturer, and ordered Dnipro to stop using the deceptive packaging.

Prepared by: Valentyna Martynenko

For more information, please contact ukraine@petosevic.com.

Source: Ukrainian Antimonopoly Committee website