Talking Shop June 2024

This edition includes the most recent episode of our podcast, Retail Therapy, as well as a summary of recent competition and consumer law developments in the UK; case updates from the UK and Australia; an overview of recent EU recommendations supporting responsible influencer content; and much more. 

Please get in touch or visit our webpage for more information about Bird & Bird's Retail & Consumer Group.

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In this edition:

• Retail Therapy Podcast
• Spotlight on the UK Digital Markets, Competition & Consumer Bill
• Generative AI
• Advertising & Marketing
• Case Updates
• Competition
• Franchising
• News & Events

Retail Therapy Podcast

Retail Therapy Episode 8: Unboxing Bias in Retail

In the Retail Therapy podcast we give a Bird’s eye insight into the trends, challenges and opportunities in the Retail & Consumer industry. In this episode we're joined by Adeena Hussain, an Associate in our Brand Management team, to discuss the multitude of ways retailers and brands can embrace the DE&I conversation to foster a more inclusive industry.

Listen to this episode on Spotify, apple or Soundcloud here, and find all previous episodes here.

Spotlight on the UK DMCC Bill

UK: A New Era For Competition & Consumer Law

The UK Parliament passed the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Bill on 23 May 2024, marking a significant milestone in the evolution of competition and consumer protection laws. This comprehensive legislation, which is expected to come into effect in autumn 2024, impacts digital markets, merger control, antitrust rules, and consumer law. 

Digital Markets & Competition Law Developments: We take a look at the significant reforms that have been made to digital markets and competition law.

Read the full article here

Consumer Law Developments: We summarise the key consumer law developments consumer-facing businesses should be aware of.

Read the full article here 

Generative AI

Australia: Generative AI in Retail - Opportunities, Risks & Regulation

The rapid advancement of generative AI means that it is high on the agenda in Australia and globally. Like any disruptive technology, generative AI has unleashed a wave of opportunities and challenges for individuals and businesses in the retail industry. In this article, we explore the gap between opportunities and risks posed by AI in the Australian retail sector. We highlight some of the key legal and regulatory issues applicable to AI. While this article focuses on the use of generative AI in Australia, for a global perspective, see our firm's extensive coverage on the issue here.

Read the full article here

Advertising & Marketing

EU: Supporting Responsible Influencer Content - EU's New Recommendations

On May 14, 2024, the Council of the European Union issued recommendations to enhance the legal and social responsibility of influencers in the digital media landscape. Acknowledging the impact influencers have on the information consumed by EU citizens, the Council outlined a comprehensive approach for the European Commission and member states to support influencers in producing lawful and socially responsible content. These principles aim to ensure transparency and fairness in social media marketing, aligning well with the Council's recommendations to promote responsible influencer behaviour and content disclosure.

Read the full article here

Case Updates

UK: Parker-Grennan v Camelot - Clear Terms & Conditions in online contract meant customer did not win £1 million prize jackpot. The decision illustrates what ‘good’ drafting looks like in this context and what businesses trading online should do to ensure that customers are aware of what they are signing up to.

Read the full article here

Australia: Use It or Lose It - Lessons from Seven Network v 7-Eleven Inc. A challenge by 7-Eleven has seen Seven lose its Australian registered trade mark for “7NOW” for the vast majority of goods and services covered by the registration. This serves as a stark reminder to trade mark owners to use their registered trade marks as trade marks and for the goods and services for which they are registered.

Read the full article here

Australia: Caporaso Pty Ltd v Mercato Centrale Australia Pty Ltd [2024] FCA 138 - Principles to determine whether foreign words can be protected as a trade mark. The case reinforces that Australian courts will not assume the meaning of a non-English word will be understood by ordinary Australian consumers.

Read the full article here

Australia: Fair Work Ombudsman v 85 Degrees Coffee Australia Pty Ltd. - The Cost of Underpayments in Franchise Networks. This case is significant because, since the “responsible franchisor entity” provisions were introduced in 2017 by the then-Turnbull Government, it represents the first time that the Fair Work Ombudsman has relied on the provisions to successfully prosecute a franchisor with respect to the failings of its franchisees.

Read the full article here

Competition

UK: Probing Paws - CMA Launches Full Market Investigation into UK's Veterinary Sector

The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has announced the launch of a full investigation into the market for veterinary services in the UK. On 23 May 2024, the CMA published its final report of the consultation which received a number of responses from various organisations and interest groups, with some expressing support for its proposed market investigation, and others considering it to be disproportionately broad and unnecessary. The investigation comes after the CMA’s preliminary review last September, which received 56,000 responses from pet owners and industry professionals.

Read the full article here

Franchising

Australia: Remaking the Code - Australian Government Unveils Franchising Reforms

This is the first in our series of articles that we intend to publish on franchising law reforms that are imminent in Australia. The raft of changes present a number of issues for franchisors and franchisees alike. It will be important to see what approach the government takes, but the imposition of any licensing regime is some way off the next iteration of the Code which is expected to be delivered in under a year.

Read the full article here

News & Events

Success at the Luxury Law Awards! We're named International Law Firm of the Year

The Luxury Law Awards recognise the skills needed to guide luxury businesses and their brands to profitable success. We are delighted to have received the award for Law Firm of the Year (International Firm) again this year! The Awards are in conjunction with the Luxury Law Summit, where Gabriel Voisin and Loren Hodgetts hosted a Q&A with LVMH's Data Protection Officer, Louis Montanié, on data protection trends in the luxury sector.

Find out more about our Luxury, Fashion & Retail team here

Data Protection in 2024: A review of the Year So Far and a look Ahead to 2025

27 June, London

We are thrilled to be running our annual data protection update event at our London office on 27 June 2024. Our experts will be providing an overview of key developments and points to watch in the UK & EU. AI is everywhere - including at our update - where we will delve into the AI Act and AI governance. We'll also be exploring key updates on ad-tech developments.

We're excited to welcome several esteemed guest speakers including Owen Rowland, Deputy Director at the Department for Science, Technology and Innovation (DSIT) who will shed light on UK data protection reform and key data policy initiatives as well as Clara Clark Nevola, Group Manager (Technology) at the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) who will delve into ICO guidance surrounding Artificial Intelligence.

Find out more and RSVP here