The Taipei High Administrative Court on Tuesday upheld fines issues to seven snorkeling companies on Siaoliouciou Island (小琉球) for conspiring to increase prices during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The court said that it upheld the penalties issued by the Fair Trade Commission following an appeal by seven of the 21 companies, which were fined NT$100,000 to NT$150,000 by the commission in February last year.
The case dates to 2021, when snorkeling and scuba tour companies on the Pingtung County-administered island were ordered to close from May 8 to Aug. 24, before being allowed to reopen with health restrictions in place.
Photo: Chen Yen-ting, Taipei Times
During that time, the commission found that the Xiaoliu Tourism Development Association and 21 snorkeling companies on Siaoliouciou held a meeting on Aug. 18, 2021, at which they agreed to uniformly raise the standard rate for snorkeling customers to NT$400 from NT$300 to NT$350.
The commission ruled that the companies had engaged in concerted action forbidden by Article 15 of the Fair Trade Act (公平交易法).
However, it said it issued “relatively low” fines in consideration of the financial difficulties the firms faced at the time.
Following the decision, seven of the companies appealed, arguing that the price hike was only a “recommendation,” and was necessary to offset losses from the months-long forced closure of their businesses.
Even after being allowed to reopen, the maximum number of customers a guide could take out was capped at five, down from 10, and mouthpieces on snorkeling masks had to be replaced after every use, resulting in higher costs, they said.
On Tuesday, the court sided with the commission, saying that the companies had acted jointly to restrict the free setting and competitive adjustment of prices, thus harming the rights of consumers.
The court cited messages in a group on the Line messaging app, meeting minutes and a joint statement issued by the companies that showed they discussed and passed a resolution to increase prices in a concerted manner.
Even though the resolution was not binding, all but one of the firms raised their prices to NT$400 and agreed to mutually supervise each other by uploading info on any company that unilaterally lowered its prices, the court said.
The ruling can be appealed.
Taiwanese scientists have engineered plants that can capture about 50 percent more carbon dioxide and produce more than twice as many seeds as unmodified plants, a breakthrough they hope could one day help mitigate global warming and grow more food staples such as rice. If applied to major food crops, the new system could cut carbon emissions and raise yields “without additional equipment or labor costs,” Academia Sinica researcher and lead author the study Lu Kuan-jen (呂冠箴) said. Academia Sinica president James Liao (廖俊智) said that as humans emit 9.6 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide compared with the 220 billion tonnes absorbed
The Taipei Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Wanda-Zhonghe Line is 81.7 percent complete, with public opening targeted for the end of 2027, New Taipei City Mayor Hou You-yi (侯友宜) said today. Surrounding roads are to be open to the public by the end of next year, Hou said during an inspection of construction progress. The 9.5km line, featuring nine underground stations and one depot, is expected to connect Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall Station to Chukuang Station in New Taipei City’s Jhonghe District (中和). All 18 tunnels for the line are complete, while the main structures of the stations and depot are mostly finished, he
Taipei is to implement widespread road closures around Taipei 101 on Friday to make way for large crowds during the Double Ten National Day celebration, the Taipei Department of Transportation said. A four-minute fireworks display is to be launched from the skyscraper, along with a performance by 500 drones flying in formation above the nearby Nanshan A21 site, starting at 10pm. Vehicle restrictions would occur in phases, they said. From 5pm to 9pm, inner lanes of Songshou Road between Taipei City Hall and Taipei 101 are to be closed, with only the outer lanes remaining open. Between 9pm and 9:40pm, the section is
China’s plan to deploy a new hypersonic ballistic missile at a Chinese People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force (PLARF) base near Taiwan likely targets US airbases and ships in the western Pacific, but it would also present new threats to Taiwan, defense experts said. The New York Times — citing a US Department of Defense report from last year on China’s military power — on Monday reported in an article titled “The missiles threatening Taiwan” that China has stockpiled 3,500 missiles, 1.5 times more than four years earlier. Although it is unclear how many of those missiles were targeting Taiwan, the newspaper reported
RSS