Poznań International Fair warns against unfair practices of an Austrian company Construct Data Verlag GMBH

"We are against any unfair activities harming Polish exhibitors and Polish businesses operating on the trade fair market"

Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry

The Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry (formerly the Polish Trade Fair Corporation) belongs to foreign national and international exhibition associations, including UFI, the Global Association of the Exhibition Industry, which definitely condemn activities of an Austrian company Construct Data Verlag GMBH, publisher of an online Fair Guide.

Poland first heard about the activities of Construct Data Verlag GMBH, publisher of the online Fair Guide, on the European exhibition market a few years ago. The Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry, and earlier the Polish Trade Fair Corporation, repeatedly informed and warned their members about activities of a company that unfairly tried to obtain significant amounts of money from the exhibition industry clients - trade fair exhibitors and organisers. 

Unfortunately, the activities of Construct Data Verlag GMBH have grown significantly also in Poland. The company offers Polish trade fair organisers and their exhibitors "free" promotion in the Fair Guide. Many companies, unaware of financial consequences they have to face upon signing and sending back a form, reply to the offer of publishing their entry in the catalogue. According to the publisher, this entails financial procedures, i.e. issue of an invoice obliging the client to pay almost 1,000 EUR for annual promotion in three consecutive years.

What is the trick and who is to blame?

The deliberate activities of Construct Data Verlag GMBH aim to mislead exhibitors and trade fair organisers by sending them an English form with specific contents. The form includes unclear information about the publisher of the Fair Guide. On the one hand, the publisher describes itself as a company independent of any organiser or marketing organisation. On the other, it mentions (illegally, i.e. without the consent of the brand owner) a name of a specific organiser and the name of a show organised by this organiser, which might suggest that this is an entry to a specific trade fair catalogue. Moreover, the form informs that when the signed form is sent back, the already existing free entry to the Fair Guide (including the company's full name, address, phone and fax number and e-mail) will be updated.

The wording of the order is very complex and printed in small print at the bottom of the sheet. It states that if the order is signed and sent back and if this decision is not revoked by registered mail within 10 days from the date, the signed party agrees to publish the entry in the online Fair Guide and is obliged to pay 971 EUR/year for three consecutive years. The statement also stipulates that the date of the first invoice shall be the commencement date of the effective period of the contract. If a decision about the resignation from the continuation of the contract is not send by registered mail at least three months before the contract termination date, this shall be understood as further cooperation with the company under the described terms in exchange for a fee.

This harmful activity pursued by the Austrian company Construct Data for a few years is strongly criticised by trade fair organisations. Unfortunately, by the end of last year Austrian national authorities and courts had taken no decisive steps to counteract this unfairly acting company although these institutions had long been notified of the fraud by the harmed parties. This was because the operations of Construct Data had been targeted at businesses from beyond Austria with respective national courts, and not Austrian courts, as competent courts.   

However, the Austrian Association against Unfair Competition (Schutzverband gegen unlautern Wettbewerb) decided in autumn 2006 that the mailing of information and advertising materials about an entry to an online catalogue of exhibitors entitled Fair Guide is classified as misleading advertisement.

The form addressee is misled mainly because of the illegal use of the organiser's name and its show's brand (while the entry has nothing to do with them) and the layout of the advertising presentation designed to give the readers an inaccurate impression that the entry is free of charge. Moreover, the forms are deliberately sent to clients shortly before the shows they pertain to.

Under the ruling of the Supreme Court of Austria stating that the practices applied by Construct Data Verlag might be harmful in the Austrian economic area and to the competitors active on the territory of Austria, the Association against Unfair Competition condemned the advertising materials referred to above and declared their use inadmissible. Moreover, it undertook some steps on the territory of the European Union and Switzerland in order to counteract unfair competition (the legislation binding on this territory is largely similar, in particular it is coherent with the Directive on misleading advertising).

The Office also recommended certain steps to be taken by the wronged parties, also as regards debt recovery activities undertaken by Premium Recovery AG seated in Switzerland in order to recover the payment arising upon the signature and sending back of the entry form. The wronged parties should send clear statements to Construct Data and Premium Recovery claming that the entry form was signed in error.

The Office presented templates of two letters to be used in correspondence with Construct Data Verlag and Premium Recovery. The templates have been published on the websites of the Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry and some trade fair organisers in Poland. The Office also informed that to the best of its knowledge no case of legal actions taken to recover the payment for the entry to the Fair Guide had been reported yet. This stance is in accordance with the provisions of the Austrian Civil Code (ABGB - Allgemeines Bürgerliches Gesetzbuch, title 871 and 864a).  

At the beginning of 2007 the Austrian Association against Unfair Competition  (Schutzverband gegen unlautern Wettbewerb) initiated procedures in order to obtain a court order to make it impossible for Construct Data Verlag to send the said forms and generate profits from them, i.e. recover amounts related to the signing of the form.

On 13 February 2007, Construct Data Verlag signed a settlement with the Association against Unfair Competition before the Austrian Court. The publisher of the Fair Guide agreed to cease mailing of misleading contract forms to the EU countries, Switzerland and in the European Economic Area and to cancel any claims towards companies that signed the contract with the publisher in error and dispute its contents.

The settlement protects companies that signed the order form convinced that they order a free-of-charge promotion service, provided that they notified Construct Data Verlag of the error by registered mail. 

However, as reported at www.StopECG.org, the publisher violates the provisions of the settlement of 13 February 2007 and continues the mailing of advertising materials on modified forms and its activities to recover payments due upon the signature of those forms. Faced with further accusations, the company claims that the settlement of 13 February 2007 does not pertain to its current activities.

It is not know how long Construct Data Verlad GmbH will continue its unfair activities. One thing is known: the settlement of 13 February 2007 has opened an opportunity for the judiciary and has become the major argument that makes it impossible for the publisher to recover material benefits generated due to its unfair activities. Thus, it seems that Construct Data Verlag cannot be a threat to the wronged parties in a potential confrontation before the court.

To find out more, please read extensive information published by foreign partners from the exhibition sector on their websites, including a special website www.StopECG.org, press articles, legal opinions and rulings issued in the European Union:

The stance of the Polish Chamber of Exhibition Industry and any tips for interested exhibitors and visitors expressed in the communication published at www.polfair.com.pl are not based on any rulings of Polish courts. 

A ruling in a given case may be issued only if a Polish company harmed by Construct Data Verlag AG files a suit against it. We know that at least a dozen Polish exhibitors harmed by the activities of the above mentioned company have sought legal advice in law firms of their choice.
 

CONTACT DATA:

Embassy of the Republic of Poland in Vienna

Hietzinger Hauptstraße 42 C, A -1130 Wien

Telephone exchange: phone: +43 87015-0, phone: +43 87015-100
On-duty phone: +43 87015-220, fax/phone: +43 87015-222

e-mail: sekretariat@BotschaftRP.at ; info@botschaftrp.at     www.BotschaftRP.at

Austrian Embassy in Poland

Ambassador of the Republic of Austria in Poland

Dr Alfred Längle
ul. Gagarina 34, 00-748 Warsaw
phone: +48 22 841 00 81-84; fax +48 22 841 00 85 e-mail: warschau-ob@bmaa.gv.at

Internet: www.ambasadaaustrii.plwww.bmaa.gv.at/warschau

Commercial Division
ul. Idzikowskiego 7/9
02-704 Warsaw
phone: +48 22 843 79 09, +48 22 843 99 32; +48 22 843 99 42, fax: +48 22 843 95 05
e-mail: warschau@austriantrade.org

Austrian Minister of Economy and Labour

Bundesminister für Wirtschaft und Arbeit (BMWA)
Dr. Martin Bartenstein
Stubenning 1, A-1010 Wien
e-mail: minister@bmwa.gv.at

Department for Competition, Ministry of Economy and Labour

Abteilung C1/6
Dampfschiffstraße 4, A- 1030 Wien