What's in a name? Publicis challenges India antitrust probe over brand-versus-entity jumble

By Aditya Kalra

NEW DELHI, July 29 (Reuters) - France's Publicis has launched a court challenge against India's antitrust body over its toughest-ever crackdown on the advertising industry, arguing the regulator has wrongly put the global brand name "Publicis Groupe" in the dock instead of the Indian legal entity.

The Competition Commission of India (CCI) last year rattled India's nearly $30 billion media and entertainment industry with dawn raids on the local operations of WPP's GroupM, Dentsu, Publicis, Omnicom and other agencies over suspected collusion on advertising rates and discounts.

However, Publicis says the CCI should amend its investigation papers to name its Indian unit, TLG India, rather than "Publicis Groupe", according to confidential documents reviewed by Reuters.

The dispute, ongoing for more than a year in court and internally at the CCI, has effectively delayed the antitrust investigation into one of the world's biggest advertising groups. The broader case could reshape how advertising is priced and sold in India.

During a Delhi High Court hearing last week, however, the antitrust watchdog's lawyer Jayant Mehta told the judge they could consider adding TLG India to the case and would return with a decision, but added the company's "endeavour is to somehow get exclusion" of its parent from the ambit of the case.

The CCI and Publicis did not respond to requests for comment. Reuters is first to report details of Publicis' tussle with the CCI.

Details of cartel cases are kept confidential in India, but Reuters had reported that the CCI's initial assessment found the firms used a WhatsApp group to coordinate and agree on pricing and entered into secret pacts. The case was triggered after Dentsu made submissions under a whistleblower-protection-like programme for lenient fines, Reuters had reported.

BRAND NAME VS LEGAL NAME

Documents show that when CCI sought permission for raids last year from an Indian court, it named all the Indian units of global advertising agencies, such as GroupM Media India, Dentsu Aegis Network India and Omnicom Media Group India.

In Publicis' case, however, it named the entity as "Publicis Groupe".

Publicis has seized on that contrast in its 889-page court filing dated June 30, which is not public but was reviewed by Reuters, arguing the watchdog should substitute its brand name with TLG India, after which it would be ready to cooperate.

The CCI has so far not agreed to Publicis' Indian unit's demands, documents show.

In March this year, investigators sent a summons addressed to Anupriya Acharya, calling her the "CEO of Publicis Groupe, South Asia", asking her to appear to answer questions under oath. 

TLG India's lawyers said Acharya cannot appear because "there is no legal person by the name of 'Publicis Groupe South Asia'," its submissions showed. Acharya did not respond to Reuters queries.

Acharya's LinkedIn page describes her as "Chief Executive Officer at Publicis Groupe, South Asia".

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra; Editing by Saad Sayeed)