The Commercial Court of LIEGE (Tribunal de Commerce de LIEGE) ruled a fair competition case against Merck Millipore in favour of RephiLe Bioscience on April 13th 2017. Key point of the ruling is that: 

The RFID identification of some Millipore systems that temporarily blocks the systems and make it necessary to follow a unlocking procedure when using a consumable from a third party is contrary to fair market practices and may harm RephiLe’s legitimate business interests as it constitutes disparagement. Consequently, Merck has been ordered to cease such acts. 

This is a joint case by RephiLe Bioscience and Analis, a reputable laboratory equipment distributor in Belgium.

 “We are very pleased with the judgement in this case”, noted Dr. Telis Dimitrakopoulos, President – Europe of RephiLe Bioscience Ltd. “We always stand behind our claims and our partners. MERCK is ordered to cease disparaging its competitors by using a software on some of its systems that dissuades using our consumables. We will now follow up with this judgement”.

About RephiLe:
Driven by innovation and quality, RephiLe is a dedicated provider of water purification systems and laboratory filtration products. At the same time, RephiLe produces comprehensive consumables that can be used in Millipore lab water systems with reliable performance. It is RephiLe’s commitment to becoming a partner of choice for customers in the area of life science and biotechnology. The company is striving to bring superior quality, high value and innovative purification tools to enable and accelerate the advancement of the life sciences and technologies. Products are being sold to over 90 countries worldwide.