The merchant site will not appear in the results of the Google search engine in France. The administrative court rejected the appeal for suspension of the merchant site filed in summary proceedings three weeks ago. Justice confirms that the DGCCRF’s de-listing request is completely legal. The site announces that it wants to bring its case before the Council of State.
What is the worst situation for a market activity? The worst situation is obviously one where a trader cannot sell her products during the period when she traditionally makes the most turnover. This is exactly what is happening with the French version of the Wish merchant portal. the November 24, the DGCCRF orders Google, Qwant, Microsoft and Apple to dereference the site and its application from their services. An effective disappearance from November 29.
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This decision by the French competition and consumer gendarme comes several months after asking Wish to better control the quality of the items sold on its site. According to an investigation made public on May 25, 2021, 90% of electronic products, 62% of jewelry and 42% of toys studied are defective and present a danger to the consumer. In July, the Ministry of the Economy asked Wish to bring itself into compliance under threat of delisting.
The administrative court rejects Wish’s summary appeal
What has not been done. Hence the request of the DGCCRF. Obviously, no longer being referenced on Google a few weeks before Christmas is catastrophic for Wish, which has appealed for interim measures to the administrative court. But the situation did not move the administrative court. Friday 17th December, the latter rendered his judgment. The interim judge dismissed Wish’s appeal, purely and simply.
In the press release issued by the court, the judge explains that the facts alleged against Wish are not only the non-compliance of the items with French and European standards, but also ” the presence of statements likely to mislead the consumer about the quality and the checks carried out on the products “. Furthermore, it rejects the priority question of constitutionality as to the legality of the decision taken by the Ministry, taking into account the elements of the investigation.
By rejecting the appeal and the site’s arguments, the administrative tribunal considers that protecting the health and safety of consumers comes first any economic prerogative, even if the holiday season represents the peak of activity of the merchant portal. Wish indicates want bring your case before the Council of State, the highest administrative body in France. If the Council of State does not render a decision in favor of Wish, the latter will logically no longer have any recourse to suspend the DGCCRF’s de-listing request.
Source: Administrative Tribunal of Paris
