copyright holders cannot prevent parallel imports into the Russian Federation – Kommersant

The Ministry of Industry and Trade stated that the mechanism of parallel import of goods to Russia is working successfully. The department emphasized that copyright holders are unable to create obstacles to the successful supply of products. On March 12, it became known that the Swedish Electrolux Group (home appliance brands Electrolux, Zanussi, AEG) began limiting the parallel import of its products to Russia.

“Based on the dynamics of parallel imports, we see that the mechanism is working successfully and copyright holders are not able to create obstacles to the successful supply of necessary products to Russia,” the ministry said.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade emphasized that the import of goods through parallel import does not require permission from the copyright holder, therefore the owner of the trademark cannot influence the supply of his products, since they have already been put into circulation in another state. Thus, parallel imports make it possible to supply to the Russian market exactly those products whose copyright holders refused to do so as part of the sanctions, the department indicated.

President Vladimir Putin legalized parallel imports in June 2022. It was extended for 2023and later – to the end 2024. Goods approved by the Ministry of Industry and Trade are imported into Russia, which are legally supplied to third countries, but are not authorized by the manufacturer for import into the Russian Federation.

On March 12, the chief executive officer of M.Video-Eldorado, Sergei Li, said that Electrolux Group had begun to limit parallel imports of its products to Russia. A Kommersant source among retailers explained that foreign brands that are trying to control parallel imports into the Russian Federation sign a moratorium on the re-export of goods with partners in other countries. Violation of the agreement results in the termination of the contract. Kommersant has learned that the French Tefal and the German Braun and Rowenta have also begun to block the supply of products to the Russian Federation through parallel imports, including sales on marketplaces.

Read more in the Kommersant article. “And the kettle won’t slip through”.