Judgment of the Court (Sixth Chamber) of 19 December 2013 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Consiglio di Stato — Italy) — Trento Sviluppo srl, Centrale Adriatica Soc. coop. arl v Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato

(Case C-281/12) (1)

(Reference for a preliminary ruling - Consumer protection - Unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices - Directive 2005/29/EC - Article 6(1) - Concept of ‘misleading action’ - Cumulative nature of the conditions set out in the provision in question)

2014/C 52/21

Language of the case: Italian

Referring court

Consiglio di Stato

Parties to the main proceedings

Appellants: Trento Sviluppo srl, Centrale Adriatica Soc. coop. arl

Respondent: Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato

Re:

Request for a preliminary ruling — Consiglio di Stato — Interpretation of Article 6(1) of Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ 2005 L 149, p. 22) — Concept of ‘misleading action’ — Cumulative nature of the conditions listed under the provision in question.

Operative part of the judgment

A commercial practice must be classified as ‘misleading’ for the purposes of Article 6(1) of Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (‘Unfair Commercial Practices Directive’) where that practice contains false information, or is likely to deceive the average consumer, and is likely to cause the consumer to take a transactional decision that he would not have taken otherwise. Article 2(k) of the directive must be interpreted as meaning that any decision directly related to the decision whether or not to purchase a product is covered by the concept of ‘transactional decision’.

(1)  OJ C 235, 4.8.2012.