Mexico - Guidelines of Information or Comparative Advertising in Prices of Goods, Products or Services Matters

Mexico, D.F., 18 January 2010 - Today the Agreement by means of which are established the Guidelines of Information or Comparative Advertising in Prices of Goods, Products or Services comes into force. This is a special regulation of Profeco published in the Official Gazette of Federation (DOF, in Spanish language) in October 19, 2009.

The information or comparative advertising of prices is a commercial practice that displays the prices of the competition and compares them with their own prices, in order to influence consumers' decisions when purchasing goods or services.

The aim of this agreement is to encourage suppliers to provide clear, truthful and adequate information when comparing prices. This prevents an economy detriment to consumers and fosters a competitive market.

These guidelines bind suppliers to follow principles in order for price comparison not to be misleading for consumers. This is possible thanks to the rule of expire of the information and comparative advertising, the specifications of types of goods, the type of products or services that can be compared etc.

The fulfillement of these Guidelines is relevant in order to enhance a critical and informed consumption. Therefore, Profeco will oversee the compliance of these Guidelines through the point of sale and monitoring the media, with the aim of preventing practices that aim to detriment consumers. In case we identify any infringements, we will carry out enforcement actions so we will penalize with a fine from arounf $30 to $100 thousand.

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