Scotch-Brite Maker Fined Rs. 10 Million for Misleading Ad

The Competition Commission of Pakistan has levied a hefty fine of Rs. 10 million on 3M Pakistan for deceptive advertising of its Scotch-Brite product. This came about after Colgate-Palmolive Pakistan lodged a complaint against 3M's marketing campaign, which involved a video comparison between the two brands after 20 minutes of washing.

The video showed Max Scrub deteriorating significantly compared to the seemingly better condition of Scotch-Brite. Following an investigation, the CCP issued a notice to 3M Pakistan, which disputed the authenticity of the video, claiming the demonstration was conducted by an employee personally and without company approval. However, the commission found that Muhammad Imran, the then regional sales manager of 3M Pakistan, had admitted to making the comparison during his official duties.

The CCP deemed this demonstration as false advertising due to its lack of reasonable basis or substantiation, and found that 3M Pakistan failed to provide evidence to support the claimed superiority of Scotch-Brite. The commission also took into account a third-party laboratory report that concluded both products were of similar quality, which 3M Pakistan did not contest during the proceedings.

Despite arguing that the demonstration wasn't advertising, as it was shown to third-party channel partners instead of directly to consumers, 3M Pakistan was still penalized for violating the Competition Act, 2010's provisions on false or misleading comparisons in advertising. The CCP has given 3M Pakistan 60 days to submit a compliance report on the payment of the fine, with an additional Rs. 50,000 daily penalty for non-compliance.