Image: Tesla
Tesla and other automakers are refusing to comply with the pricing-related clause in a recent pledge agreement for fair competition. In turn, The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) has now removed this requirement, as it was inappropriate and violated the anti-monopoly law.
On Thursday, 16 automakers in China, including Tesla as the only foreign brand, attended the Fair Competition Pledge signing ceremony. It took place at the China Automotive Forum in Shanghai. The details of the agreement, which is non-binding were:
- Adhere to industry rules and regulations, regulate marketing activities, maintain fair competition and not disrupt fair competition with abnormal pricing
- Pay attention to marketing and publicity methods, not exaggerate or use false publicity to attract attention or gain new customers
- Put quality first, improve lives with high-quality products and services
- Promote core socialist values, actively fulfill social responsibilities, and take on the heavy responsibility of maintaining steady growth, strengthening confidence and preventing risks
Among all points, “not disrupt fair competition with abnormal pricing” caused a lot of discussion and discontent among consumers. Now CAAM has announced that it has adjusted the promise to remove the price-related statement to avoid misunderstandings.
CAAM acknowledged that the statement in the obligation to “not disrupt fair competition with abnormal pricing” is inappropriate and inconsistent with the principles of China's antitrust law. CAAM announced that the statement related to the price has been removed from the pledge. It called on the 16 auto companies and other CAAM members to comply with antitrust and other laws and regulations and to set their own prices to compete fairly.
On Friday, Tesla increased referral incentives in China for Model 3 and Model Y. Further, the company said on Weibo that buyers will get 90 days of free access to the company's advanced autopilot upon purchase. Volkswagen has also started offering big discounts in China for its ID. line of electric vehicles.
© 2023, Eva Fox | Tesmanian. All rights reserved.
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Article edited by @SmokeyShorts; follow him on Twitter
About the Author
Eva Fox
Eva Fox joined Tesmanian in 2019 to cover breaking news as an automotive journalist. The main topics that she covers are clean energy and electric vehicles. As a journalist, Eva is specialized in Tesla and topics related to the work and development of the company.
