Group boycott
Agreement among competitors to refuse to deal with certain suppliers, customers or entrants — group boycott. Can block competition and market access.
Linguistic warning signals
- agreements not to hire a certain supplier
- coordination to reject offers from a new entrant
- informal blacklists shared among competitors
Why it matters
Group boycotts often present themselves as a legitimate, individual business decision — "we don't want to work with that supplier" — when they're actually a coordinated decision among competitors. It's especially risky for trade associations that collectively decide to exclude a market actor (e.g., a new entrant with lower prices), since many jurisdictions treat this as a per se violation, with no need to prove actual anticompetitive effects.
Relevant regulatory framework
- Chile — DL 211 Art. 3
- Brazil — Lei 12.529/2011
- USA — Sherman Act § 1 (per se illegal)
Recommended action
- 1Document the independent business reason for any decision not to deal with a third party.
- 2Avoid coordinating exclusion decisions about suppliers or customers within trade association settings.
- 3Escalate to legal any proposed "blacklist" shared among competitors.
- 4Check whether the decision disproportionately affects a new market entrant.
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