Directly or indirectly to give or permit to be given or offer to give money or anything of value to agents, employees or representatives of customers or prospective customers, or to agents, employees or representatives of competitors' customers or prospective customers, without the knowledge of their employers or principals, as an inducement to influence their employers or principals to purchase or contract to purchase industry products from the maker of such gift or offer, or to influence such employers or principals to refrain from dealing or contracting to deal with competitors, is an unfair trade practice. § 119.13

Espionage.

public as a manufacturer or wholesaler when such is not the fact, or in any other manner to misrepresent the character, extent or type of his or its business, with the tendency or capacity to mislead or deceive purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 119.16 False marking or branding.

The false or deceptive marking or branding of products of the industry for the purpose or with the tendency, capacity or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public with respect to the grade, quality, quantity, use, size, material, content, origin, preparation, manufacture or distribution of such products, or in any other material respect, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.2

Inducing breach of contract.

Willfully inducing or attempting to induce, by any false or deceptive means whatsoever, the breach of any lawful contract or contracts existing between competitors and their customers or their suppliers, or willfully interfering with or obstructing the performance of any such contractual duties or services, with the purpose and effect of unduly hampering, injuring or embarrassing competitors in their businesses, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.3 Imitation of trade-marks, trade names, etc.

The imitation of the trade-marks, trade names, brands, labels or other marks of identification of competitors, having the tendency, capacity or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice. § 120.4 Threats of suit.

The circulation of threats of suit for infringement of patents or trade-marks among customers or prospective customers of competitors, not made in good faith but for the purpose or with the effect of harassing or intimidating such customers or prospective customers, or of unduly hampering, injuring or prejudicing competitors in their businesses, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.5 Discrimination.

(a) Prohibited discriminatory differentials, rebates, refunds, discounts, credits and other allowances. It is an unfair trade practice for any member of the industry engaged in commerce in the course of such commerce, to grant or allow, secretly or openly, directly or indirectly, any price differentials, rebates,

refunds, discounts, credits or other allowances which effectuate a discrimination in price between different purchasers of goods of like grade and quality where either or any of the purchases involved therein are in commerce and where the effect thereof may be substantially to lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly in any line of commerce or to injure, destroy or prevent competition with any person who either grants or knowingly receives the benefit of such discrimination or with customers of either of them: Provided however, (1) That the goods involved in any such transaction are sold for use, consumption or resale within any place under the jurisdiction of the United States;

(2) That nothing contained in this section shall prevent differentials which make only due allowance for differences in the cost of manufacture, sale or delivery resulting from the differing methods or quantities in which such commodities are to such purchasers sold or delivered;

(3) That nothing contained in this section shall prevent persons engaged in selling goods, wares or merchandise in commerce from selecting their own customers in bona fide transactions and not in restraint of trade;

(4) That nothing contained in this section shall prevent price changes from time to time where made in response to changing conditions affecting either (i) the market for the goods concerned, or (ii) the marketability of the goods, such as, but not limited to, actual or imminent deterioration of perishable goods, obsolescence of seasonal goods, distress sales under court process, or sales in good faith in discontinuance of business in the goods concerned.

(b) Prohibited brokerages and commissions. It is an unfair trade practice for any member of the industry engaged in commerce, in the course of such commerce, to pay or grant, or to receive or accept, anything of value as a commission, brokerage, or other compensation, or any allowance or discount in lieu thereof, except for services rendered in connection with the sale or purchase of goods, wares, or merchandise, either to the other party to such transaction or to an agent, representative, or other intermediary therein where such intermediary is acting in fact for or in behalf, or is subject to the direct or indirect control, of any party to such transaction other than the person by whom such compensaion is so granted or paid.

(c) Prohibited advertising or promotional allowances, etc. It is an unfair trade practice for any member of the industry engaged in commerce to pay or contract for the payment of advertising or promotional allowances or any other thing of value to or for the benefit of a customer of such member in the course of such commerce as compensation or in consideration for any services or facilities furnished by or through such customer in connection with the processing, handling, sale or offering for sale of any products or commodities manufactured, sold or offered for sale by such member, unless such payment or consideration is available on proportionally equal terms to all other customers competing in the distribution of such products or commodities.

(d) Prohibited discriminatory services or facilities. It is an unfair trade practice for any member of the industry engaged in commerce to discriminate in favor of one purchaser against another purchaser or purchasers of a commodity bought for resale, with or without processing, by contracting to furnish or by furnishing, or by contributing to the furnishing of, any services or facilities connected with the processing, handling, sale or offering for sale of such commodity so purchased upon terms not accorded to all purchasers on proportionally equal terms.

(e) Illegal price discrimination. It is an unfair trade practice for any member of the industry or other person engaged in commerce, in the course of such commerce, to discriminate in price in any other respect contrary to section 2 of the Clayton Act as amended by the act of Congress approved June 19, 1936, or knowingly to induce or receive a discrim-. ination in price which is prohibited by such section as amended.

(Sec. 2, 38 Stat. 730, as amended, secs. 2, 3, 4, 49 Stat. 1527, 1528; 15 U. S. C. 13, 13a, 13b, 21a) § 120.6 Defamation of competitors.

The defamation of competitors by falsely imputing to them dishonorable conduct, inability to perform contracts, questionable credit standing, or by other false representations, or the false disparagement of the grade, quality or manufacture of the products of competitors, or of their business methods, selling prices, values, credit terms, policies or services, with the tendency, capacity or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice.

The practice of coercing the purchase of one or more products as a prerequisite to the purchase of one or more other products, where the effect may be to substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly or to unreasonably restrain trade, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.10 Fictitious prices.

Offering merchandise for sale at prices purported to be reduced from what are in fact fictitious prices, or offering merchandise for sale at a purported reduction in price when such purported reduction is in fact fictitious, with the tendency and capacity or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.11 Misuse of the word "free."

The use of the word "free" where not properly or fairly qualified when the article is in fact not free, with the tendency or capacity to mislead or deceive purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice.

Directly or indirectly to give or permit to be given or offer to give money or anything of value to agents, employees or representatives of customers or prospective customers, or to agents, employees or representatives of competitors' customers or prospective customers, without the knowledge of their employers or principals, as an inducement to influence their employers or principals to purchase or contract to purchase industry products from the maker of such gift or offer, or to influence such employers or principals to refrain from dealing or contracting to deal with competitors, is an unfair trade practice. § 120.14

Espionage.

Securing information from competitors concerning their businesses by false or misleading statements or representations or by false impersonation of one in authority, and the wrongful use thereof to unduly hinder or stifle the competition of such competitor, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.15 Misrepresenting products as conforming to standard.

In connection with the sale or offering for sale of products of the industry, representing through advertising, or otherwise that such products conform to any standards recognized in or applicable to the industry when such is not the fact, with the tendency, capacity or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.16 Misrepresenting character of business.

For any person, firm or corporation to hold himself or itself out to the public as a manufacturer or wholesaler when such is not the fact, or in any other manner to misrepresent the character, extent or type of his or its business, with the tendency or capacity to mislead or deceive purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.17 False marking or branding.

The false or deceptive marking or branding of products of the industry for the purpose or with the tendency, capac

ity or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers, or the consuming public with respect to the grade, quality, quantity, use, size, material, content, origin, preparation, manufacture or distribution of such products, or in any other material respect, is an unfair trade practice.

§ 120.18 False invoicing.

Withholding from or inserting in invoices or sales tickets any statements or information by reason of which omission or insertion a false record is made, wholly or in part, of the transactions represented on the face of such invoices or sales tickets, with the purpose or effect of thereby misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice.

The use of any product of the industry as a "loss leader" to induce the purchase of other merchandise, the sale of which merchandise is used to recoup the loss sustained on the "loss leader" product so sold, with the tendency, capacity or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, and which unfairly diverts trade from or otherwise injures competitors, is an unfair trade practice. § 121.3 False and misleading price quotations, etc.

The publishing or circulating by any member of the industry of false or misleading price quotations, price lists, terms or conditions of sale, or reports as to transportation costs, production or sales, with the purpose and tendency or capacity to mislead or deceive purchasers, prospective purchasers or the consuming public, is an unfair trade practice. § 121.4

Discrimination.

(a) Prohibited discriminatory differentials, rebates, refunds, discounts, credits and other allowances. It is an unfair trade practice for any member of the industry engaged in commerce, in the course of such commerce, to grant or allow secretly or openly, directly or in directly, any price differentials, rebates, refunds, discounts, credits or other allowances which effectuate a discrimination in price between different purchasers of goods of like grade and quality where either or any of the purchases involved therein are in commerce and where the effect thereof may be substantially to lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly in any line of commerce or to injure, destroy or prevent competition with any person who either grants or knowingly receives the benefit of such discrimination or with customers of either of them: Provided, however, (1) That the goods involved in any such transaction are sold for use, consumption or resale within any place under the jurisdiction of the United States;

(2) That nothing contained in this section shall prevent differentials which make only due allowance for differences in the cost of manufacture, sale or delivery resulting from the differing methods or quantities in which such commodities are to such purchasers sold or delivered;