Can Online Sales by Dealers and Distributors Be Restricted?
This article provides general information. Legislation, time limits and amounts may change over time; obtain an up-to-date assessment of your specific situation.
A supplier may organise its distribution network by territory. This does not automatically justify requiring a dealer to reject every online order from customers in another area. A key question under Turkish competition law is who initiated the sale.
What is the difference between active and passive sales?
Directly contacting customers or targeting ads at customers in another dealer’s exclusive territory can amount to active selling. Where a customer independently finds a publicly accessible online shop and places an order, that is generally passive selling. Delivery to the customer’s address does not change that classification on its own.
Which contract terms need closer examination?
Active sales into a properly allocated exclusive territory may be restricted under certain conditions within the block exemption rules. Restrictions on passive sales generally take the agreement outside the block exemption. A rule that automatically cancels online orders based on the customer’s address, for example, may restrict passive sales.
Suppliers may set quality standards for online presentation or customer support. What matters is their nature and whether they effectively prevent online selling. Where an agreement falls outside the block exemption, the individual exemption conditions in Article 5 of Law No. 4054 must be assessed separately.
Turkish Competition Authority · Guidelines on Vertical Agreements · Law No. 4054, Articles 4–5