VBER DEEP DIVE - Online sales

Must a supplier permit online sales by its buyers?

The prohibition to restrict online sales remains under the new VBER regime and has even been upgraded to the list of hardcore restrictions:

- A supplier may not prevent the effective use of the internet by the buyer or its customers to sell the contract goods or services, otherwise he would be imposing an illegal customer or territorial restriction.
- A restriction or ban of sales on online marketplaces only restricts the use of a specific online sales channel. If other online sales channels remain available to the buyer, such restriction or ban does not prevent the effective use of the internet and is therefore not an illegal customer or territorial restriction.
- Exclusive distributors must be protected against active sales by all other buyers of the supplier in the EU. That protection includes protection against active online sales, which are now defined in the VBER itself.