By Edith Hancock and Dominic Chopping

France's antitrust watchdog fined a dozen home-appliance manufacturers and distributors some 611 million euros ($632.7 million) over concerns they fixed prices on retail products to weather competition from e-commerce platforms.

The French Competition Authority said Thursday that manufacturers including LG, Miele, Smeg, Electrolux, SEB and Whirlpool as well as distributors such as Fnac Darty breached the country's competition rules between 2009 and 2014.

Groupe SEB got the highest penalty at 189.5 million euros, followed by Fnac Darty with a 109 million fine. SEB said it will appeal the regulator's decision, while Fnac Darty said it won't contest the fine.

The watchdog said ten manufacturers forged individual agreements with their retail distributors to artificially keep sales prices high in a bid to stave off competition from the fast-evolving e-commerce sector. That included using coded language to strong-arm retailers into selling products at prices recommended by the manufacturers, it said.

Several online-only retailers testified that manufacturers required their distribution partners to have physical stores or stopped some products being sold online, according to the French Competition Authority's ruling.

SEB said it denies all allegations that its practices haven't complied with competition rules. "Groupe SEB has always acted in its customers' best interests and for the benefit of French consumers, in strict compliance with the regulations in force," it said.

Fnac Darty said it decided against contesting the fine to put a rapid end to the procedure and that it would book an additional charge of 24 million euros on top of a provision it booked last year.

Electrolux, which was fined 44.5 million euros, said the penalty is covered by a provision it booked more than a year ago.

Whirlpool said its French business settled the first part of the regulator's investigation back in 2018 and this latest fine reflects a settlement with the regulator on the second part of its probe.

LG, Miele and Smeg didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

Write Edith Hancock at edith.hancock@wsj.com and to Dominic Chopping at dominic.chopping@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 19, 2024 08:55 ET (13:55 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.