In March 2014, the Competition Tribunal dismissed a case against South African Breweries Limited (SAB) in respect of its distribution systems. The Competition Commission alleged that SAB's conduct amounted to:
The Tribunal found that:
The Commission unsuccessfully appealed the decision of the Tribunal to the CAC. The CAC found that:
The CAC concluded that (in line with international precedents) the relationship between SAB and its authorised distributors is more accurately characterised as a vertical relationship and that the horizontal component of the relationship was incidental to and flows from the vertical supply arrangement. Accordingly, the conduct of SAB cannot be appropriately considered under s4 of the Act.
Accordingly, the CAC dismissed the Commission's appeal with costs. It has been reported that the Commission is considering its options to appeal the decision of the CAC to the Constitutional Court.