Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi: Indian e-commerce giant Flipkart's 'Big Billion Day' sale has not gone down well with offline marketers with Future Group CEO Kishore Biyani accusing the online retailers of anti-competitive action.
Miffed at sale of products below its manufacturing price, Biyani said such undercutting can be done "only to destroy competition".
Recently Flipkart splashed full-page advertisements in leading newspapers across the country, offering "bumper discounts" and "crazy deals" on consumer durables, electronic goods and a variety of utility products at unbeatable prices, there was a mad rush for placing orders, as some of the most-sought after products were available on first-cum-first basis due to limited stocks.
Flipkart later apologised for the glitches encountered during 'Big Billion Day' sale, admitting its "failure" in living upto the expectations of its customers.
Acknowledging that it was not adequately prepared for the sheer scale of the event, Flipkart promised to come better prepared next time.
Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) too has expressed concerns over huge discounts being offered by e-commerce firms. It has asked the Commerce and Industry Ministry to take steps to monitor and regulate online businesses.
"Such a practice if continued, may result into unavailability of products in offline market which will further result into a monopolistic situation which will be controlled and dominated by the e commerce retailers," CAIT National General Secretary Praveen Khandelwal said.
He said it amounts to predatory pricing and the government should take necessary steps to control this.
"In the present case, the traders are in a disadvantageous position and can not compete with online retailers," Khandelwal said.
With PTI Inputs
