Miller-Tydings Resale Price Maintenance Act of 1937
The Miller-Tydings Resale Price Maintenance Act of 1937 was a United States federal law that allowed manufacturers to fix minimum resale prices for their products. This act was passed in response to a Supreme Court decision that deemed resale price maintenance agreements as illegal under the Sherman Antitrust Act.
Under the Miller-Tydings Act, manufacturers were permitted to enter into agreements with retailers to set minimum prices at which their products could be sold. This was seen as a way to protect small retailers from price-cutting by larger competitors, and to ensure a fair marketplace for all parties involved.
However, the Miller-Tydings Act was eventually overturned by the Supreme Court in 1968, as it was believed to have a negative impact on competition and consumer welfare. The decision to repeal the act was based on the belief that price competition is essential for a healthy economy, and that resale price maintenance agreements were anticompetitive in nature.
Despite its repeal, the Miller-Tydings Resale Price Maintenance Act of 1937 remains an important piece of legislation in the history of antitrust law in the United States.
- Example: A manufacturer of luxury handbags enters into a resale price maintenance agreement with a boutique retailer to ensure that the handbags are sold at a minimum price, thus maintaining the brand’s exclusivity.
- Example: A consumer electronics company sets minimum resale prices for its products to prevent retailers from engaging in price wars that could devalue the brand.
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