The new laws are designed to protect small commercial operations from unfair pricing strategies and promotions.
Rob Pardini, a MindShare director, claimed that an unintended consequence of the laws would be that retailers would begin spending more money on other forms of marketing in order to maintain sales. Digital media and below-the-line specialists could be huge winners, he suggested.
Michael Luscombe, the Woolworths chief executive, said the new laws would make it difficult to know for how long the company could offer discounted prices before being taken to court.
