CCP recovers Rs30 million from Reckitt Benckiser in Strepsils marketing case

The Competition Commission of Pakistan has recovered a Rs30 million penalty from Reckitt Benckiser Pakistan Limited after the Competition Appellate Tribunal upheld findings of deceptive marketing involving Strepsils.

According to a CCP statement, the Tribunal upheld the Commission’s February 9, 2021, order, which found that the company had provided consumers with misleading information about the nature and classification of the product.

The company was found to have created the impression that Strepsils was a medicinal product for sore-throat relief despite its deregistration as a drug and subsequent marketing as a non-medicated product.

Strepsils is currently registered as a food item, the Commission said.

The conduct was found to have violated Section 10(2)(b) of the Competition Act, 2010.

The Tribunal directed Reckitt Benckiser Pakistan Limited to pay Rs30 million and complete the corrective measures prescribed by CCP within the stipulated period.

The proceedings originated from a complaint submitted by M/s Square Distribution & Marketing System (Pvt.) Limited, which alleged that the company’s advertising and marketing misrepresented the status and characteristics of Strepsils.

CCP said Reckitt Benckiser had subsequently changed the product’s packaging and disclosures.

The updated packaging and blister packs now display the words “Non-Medicated” in English and Urdu on the front.

The company has also been directed to publicise the product’s change from the medicated or drug category to the food category through advertisements in widely circulated English and Urdu newspapers across Pakistan.

The advertising requirement will remain in place until the company achieves full compliance with CCP’s directions.