Rajiv Rai Sachdev   Vs.  Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Limited and Other

Case No. 39 of 2023 Page 1 of 10 COMPETITION COMMISSION OF INDIA Case No. 39 of 2023 In Re: Rajiv Rai Sachdev S/o Gulshan Sachdev J-88, 3rd Floor, Kalkaji, New Delhi – 110 019. Informant And Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Limited P&G Plaza, Cardinal Gracias Road, Chakala, Andheri East, Mumbai, Maharashtra – 400 099. Opposite Party No. 1 The Procter & Gamble Company, USA #1 Procter & Gamble Plaza, Cincinnati, OH 45202, United States. Opposite Party No. 2 CORAM Ms. Ravneet Kaur Chairperson Mr. Anil Agrawal Member Ms. Sweta Kakkad Member Mr. Deepak Anurag Member ORDER UNDER SECTION 26(2) OF THE COMPETITION ACT, 2002 1. The present Information has been filed by Shri Rajiv Rai Sachdev (‘Informant’) under Section 19(1)(a) of the Competition Act, 2002 (the ‘Act’) against Procter & Gamble Hygiene and Health Care Limited (‘OP-1’) and The Procter & Gamble Company, USA (‘OP-2’) (together the ‘OPs’) alleging contravention of the provisions of Section 4(2)(c) of the Act. 2. The Informant is the promoter of a start-up company Advantage Nature, a unit of Advantage Television Pvt. Ltd. It is stated that with a vision to create sustainable textile products with comprehensive herbal hygiene function, the Informant invented a disruptive green technology i.e. “Process of dyeing and processing a natural textile Case No. 39 of 2023 Page 2 of 10 products using natural dyes/ herbs alongside Neem and Tulsi” called ‘Enliven’. The said technology was duly patented by the Informant in India, US and Europe and many more fresh patents are also pending across the globe filed through World Intellectual Property Organisation (‘WIPO’) route in this domain. As per the Information, the prime vision and business model of the Informant is to collaborate/ license Enliven to other companies having global presence and as such, he has been promoting the application of his patented technology in all kinds of garments and textile products. 3. OP-2, an American multinational company founded in 1837, is a consumer goods corporation headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. It is stated to specialise in a wide range of personal health/ consumer health and personal care & hygiene products, including Sanitary Pads (manufacturing and selling) under the brand name ‘Whisper’. The Indian subsidiary of OP-2 is OP-1, having its office/ establishment at Mumbai, Maharashtra. 4. As per the Informant, in 2018, he learnt about an initiative of the OPs “PG Connect + Develop”, whereunder the OPs, through their portal www.pgconnectdevelop.com, invited applications from techno-innovators like the Informant, who desired to partner with the OPs, to make their submissions to the OPs for development of innovative products. The Informant stated that under the OPs’ said program, he filed his submissions on 18.05.2018 with the title “Functional Herbal Hygiene Bio Finishes for Sanitary Pads & Diapers for Adults & Kids”. As per the Informant, he explained to the OPs details about the beneficial hygiene and wellness properties of neem, its unique features, and the benefits it offers relative to existing solutions both in terms of P&G’s target customers and mother earth along with patent details in the name of the Informant, and applicability of the same upon the products of P&G i.e. Sanitary Pads used by females and Diapers used by kids as well as adults. 5. As per the Informant, the submission of the Informant was duly acknowledged by the OPs vide e-mail dated 18.05.2018. However, the OPs, vide e-mail communication dated 02.08.2018, communicated to the Informant that they do not wish to pursue his submission currently, citing that “Even such a large company as P&G must make strategic decisions regarding which opportunities we pursue. Regardless of its merit, we may find that a submitted technology, product, package, or other innovation is not a Case No. 39 of 2023 Page 3 of 10 fit for our current needs or strategies. Typically, we are not at liberty to provide detailed reasons for these decisions.” 6. The Informant stated that post 2018, he went on to pursue his dream of using his patented technology at commercial level and kept approaching other market players in the field of textiles and hygiene products with functional herbal hygiene. One of such players “Peter England”, a brand of Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Ltd., in 2020, launched its products treated with Enliven and duly acknowledged and tested the benefits of the Informant’s green technology on its gamut of textile products. 7. As per the Informant, in October 2021, the Informant came across a new type of Sanitary Pads launched by the OPs namely “Whisper ultra clean” with the description “New with Herbal Oil” and “Our No. 1 Hygienic Protection”. The Informant alleged that the said product has exactly the same claims, features and benefits which were offered by the Informant’s submission dated 18.05.2018 to the OPs. Further, as per the Informant, the new product of the OPs, apart from this description, also contains upon its packaging pictorial view of “Neem Leaves” which makes it clear that the said product is treated with “Herbal Oil and extracts of Neem”. As per the Informant, the product packaging itself of “Whisper ultra clean” is sufficient to adduce that the said product is subjected to a particular process or treatment with the help of herbal/ neem oil or extracts to make it No. 1 in hygiene protection. 8. As per the Informant, he had, under the P&G Connect + Develop program, accepted the offer proposal of P&G and made his submissions to treat sanitary pads and diapers with hygiene and herbal properties on a non-confidential basis, only for the specific purpose of evaluation of his submission by P&G for partnering/ collaboration, according to the terms and conditions mentioned under the program. Under their technology/ innovation submission program, the OPs had mandated compulsory disclosure without signing any non-disclosure agreement (‘NDA’) by the participants. The terms and conditions stated that the “non-confidential basis” was only for the purpose of expediting the evaluation process of the innovations. 9. However, the Informant alleged that from the product being sold by the OPs, it is evidently clear that the OPs misused the information/ idea shared by the Informant and they failed to confirm to their terms and conditions conveyed through Case No. 39 of 2023 Page 4 of 10 www.pgconnectdevelop.com wherein the OPs committed that “P&G uses this information to communicate with you about your submission only not for any other purpose without your express approval”. As per the Informant, the OPs have used the information/ idea of the Informant without his consent or any agreement whatsoever. As per the Informant, submission made “non-confidential basis” solely for the purpose of evaluation does not give P&G the rights to use the submission and cheat or take advantage of innovators like the Informant. The Informant stated that while replying to the Informant vide e-mail dated 02.08.2018, the OPs had nowhere mentioned that the proposed solution is already known to them or that they already have work in progress in the area encompassed by the submission or conveyed any other doubts about the efficacy of Informant’s technology or patent as expressly mentioned in the pre-defined terms and conditions of the Connect + Develop program. 10. Further, the Informant submitted that in 2020, Aditya Birla Fashions and Retail Ltd. gave an official press release of Peter England Neem Tulsi Collection Apparel and Mask. As per the Informant, after going through Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited and the Informant’s promotional material, the OPs realised the true potential of the Informant’s internationally patented green technology, which was already shared by the Informant with them in 2018 and accordingly, they launched their product Whisper ultra clean sanitary pads in a big way in 2021, after stealing the Informant’s vision document with creative ideas brochure. This, as per the Informant, amounts to abuse of dominant position by the OPs in contravention of Section 4(2)(c) of the Act i.e. indulging in practices resulting in denial of market access to the Informant. The Informant submitted that using their dominant power, unethical aid and deceptive business practices, the OPs have ousted the Informant at the very inception, from bringing in the use of his innovative technology applied upon sanitary pads segment of the products. By putting the technology of the Informant to commercial use in such a deceptive way, the OPs became the first market player to bring in such a product with over 50% market share in the relevant market of sanitary pads both geographically and revenue wise, meaning thereby that the Informant has lost the first edge to collaborate and bring into the relevant market such product despite being the inventor/ innovator of such technology with duly registered patents in his name.