Aberdeen Journals Ltd is appealing against a decision by the Office of Fair Trading, which found the company guilty of abusing a dominant market position and resulted in a £1.328m fine.

In September this year the OFT ruled that the company used its position to try to remove the Aberdeen & District Independent from the market by selling cheap advertising in its weekly Herald & Post - an infringement of Section 18 of the Competition Act 1998.

Now the newspaper publisher is asking the Competition Commission Appeal Tribunal to set aside the decision, either wholly or in part, and also to either set aside or reduce the penalty imposed.

It is also seeking a declaration that the group did not infringe Section 18 of the Competition Act during the period of March 1 to March 29, 2000 and is asking that the OFT pay the publisher's costs relating to this appeal and an earlier appeal.

The application follows an original decision by the OFT in July 2001, which was overturned by Aberdeen Journals after it claimed that the way the OFT had defined local market conditions was flawed.

However in September this year, after further assessment of the case, the OFT again ruled that the company did abuse a dominant market position.

But the company is still maintaining that it did not hold a dominant position in the market for the supply of advertising space in both paid-for and free local newspapers in Aberdeen or the circulation area of the Herald & Post, and that even if it did, it did not abuse its position by engaging in predatory pricing.

It has also said that even if it did, it did not commit the infringement intentionally or negligently and it should not be required to pay a penalty, but if one is necessary, the amount currently imposed is too high.

Interested parties, who wish to intervene in the proceedings, are invited to get in touch with the Competition Commission Appeal Tribunal by December 22.

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