Parallelimport

As a parallel import is defined as the most commercial imports of goods produced abroad on a distribution channel that has not been authorized by the manufacturer. The manufacturer's domestic sales network is purposely avoided, because the goods can be more cheaply abroad due to the pricing policy of the manufacturer or tax differences.

In the literature a distinction is made between parallel imports and re-imports lateral gray imports, which can be summarized under the term arbitrage processes.

• Parallel import occurs when the country of origin, a lower price is required as in the exporting country.
• In contrast, the favorable goods acquired in the exporting country are re-exported reimport.
• Lateral gray imports arise between two exporting countries with large price differentials.

Ie parallel and reimport represents the sale of a product by an unauthorized distributors in a market other than that intended by the manufacturer market dar.

Parallel imported goods can be offered at lower rates in the domestic market and undermine the manufacturer's distribution network. The price differentiation of the company requires that the individual sub-markets can be isolated from each other, this applies especially to the spatial or geographic price differentiation. The profit from price discrimination, however, can be threatened by arbitrage processes when consumers in high price countries get access to the market of a low- price country. This is particularly strong in the area of the pharmaceutical industry. Companies try therefore usually to stop with the help of patent, copyright or trade mark provisions of the parallel import.

From a legal point parallel import is often the tension between competition law and intellectual property law. So should be restricted from commercially for example, by Article 82 of the Treaty establishing the European Community restrictions. On the other hand, is inhibited by the principle of regional exhaustion parallel imports into the EU.

In countries with a high price level (eg, Switzerland ) at the people particularly like right in the neighboring countries, since the price advantage may sometimes be immense (eg in cars, tractors or drugs). Especially in Switzerland, there are many legal restrictions on import. Thus, patent -protected goods against the will of the patentee are generally prohibited under the Kodak decision of the Swiss Federal Court of parallel imports. However, the refusal of parallel imports may violate antitrust law. Medication must be approved separately in Switzerland, before they can be imported.

On 1 July 2009 occurred in Switzerland, a revised patent law in force, which now also parallel imports of patented products, with the exception of drugs in Switzerland are permitted.