220
Opinion of the Court
competition with any person who either grants or knowingly receives the benefit of such discrimination, or with customers of either of them." 15 U. S. C. § 13(a).
Although we have reiterated that " 'a price discrimination within the meaning of [this] provision is merely a price difference,' " Texaco Inc. v. Hasbrouck, 496 U. S. 543, 558 (1990) (quoting FTC v. Anheuser-Busch, Inc., 363 U. S. 536, 549 (1960)), the statute as a practical matter could not, and does not, ban all price differences charged to "different purchasers of commodities of like grade and quality." Instead, the statute contains a number of important limitations, one of which is central to evaluating Liggett's claim: By its terms, the Robinson-Patman Act condemns price discrimination only to the extent that it threatens to injure competition. The availability of statutory defenses permitting price discrimination when it is based on differences in costs, § 13(a), "changing conditions affecting the market for or the marketability of the goods concerned," ibid., or conduct undertaken "in good faith to meet an equally low price of a competitor," § 13(b); Standard Oil Co. v. FTC, 340 U. S. 231, 250 (1951), confirms that Congress did not intend to outlaw price differences that result from or further the forces of competition. Thus, "the Robinson-Patman Act should be construed consistently with broader policies of the antitrust laws." Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Co. v. FTC, 440 U. S. 69, 80, n. 13 (1979). See also Automatic Canteen Co. of America v. FTC, 346 U. S. 61, 63, 74 (1953).
Liggett contends that Brown & Williamson's discriminatory volume rebates to wholesalers threatened substantial competitive injury by furthering a predatory pricing scheme designed to purge competition from the economy segment of the cigarette market. This type of injury, which harms direct competitors of the discriminating seller, is known as primary-line injury. See FTC v. Anheuser-Busch, Inc., supra, at 538. We last addressed primary-line injury over 25 years ago, in Utah Pie Co. v. Continental Baking Co.,
Page: Index Previous 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 NextLast modified: October 4, 2007