An initiative by Keeta in Brazil to overcome the difficulty in increasing the number of restaurants on the app has led to lawsuits from establishments against the Chinese delivery platform Meituan .
Present in 11 cities in Brazil, the platform has adopted a model called "intermediated purchase" in the country, which, in practice, consists of placing copies of menus from restaurants that do not have any commercial agreement with Keeta on the app.
The companies claim that the measure, taken without the establishments' authorization, represents the misuse of trademarks, a violation of industrial property rights, and direct interference in the relationship with consumers.
The problem is that, with "intermediary purchasing," the restaurant doesn't have access to who the actual end consumer is. In practice, Keeta places the order at the restaurant in its own name, as if it were the customer, and then delivers it to that consumer's home.
In Brazil, only Keeta adopts this measure. Neither iFood , which leads the national delivery market, nor 99Food , which began operating last year, like its Chinese rival, use this feature.
Restaurant chains like Giraffas and Pizza Hut, which are available on iFood and 99Food, have filed lawsuits against the Chinese platform. NeoFeed had access to the full text of the petitions filed in court against Keeta.
In the case of Giraffas , in the legal proceedings underway in the 2nd Business and Arbitration Disputes Court of São Paulo, the company states that "the plaintiff never authorized the defendant to use the Giraffas brand" and that "the unauthorized use of the brand constitutes an infringement of the rights held by the plaintiff."
According to the network, the practice violates Article 5 of the Constitution and the Industrial Property Law. The company presents images of pages created by Keeta based on the operations of restaurants in São Paulo and Santos, on the coast, the first city where the Chinese platform operated in Brazil, starting in October of last year.
Before formally filing a complaint in court, the restaurant chain founded by Carlos Guerra sent an extrajudicial notification to Keeta in early December of last year, requesting that they discontinue this mechanism on their platform.
In response, Keeta stated that it is not committing any illegal acts and confirmed that it would continue with the modality. "In a spirit of collaboration, respect, and good faith, Keeta regrets the Notifier's distorted perception and clarifies that it does not practice and has not practiced any illegal activity of any kind," the response reads.
The company claims to be "an intermediary, facilitator, and promoter of the trade of products and services already available on the market." However, it acknowledges that it has commercial contracts with restaurant chains but not with others.
"For cases where there is no signed contract, Keeta provides consumers with menus and other publicly accessible information from establishments that are open for free trade and located within its area of operation," it adds. It was from this point, then, that Giraffas filed the legal challenge.
In the case of Pizza Hut , the court denied an injunction to stop the Chinese platform from offering this service, but the process is still ongoing.
Interference in the strategy
According to Fernando Blower, CEO of the National Restaurant Association (ANR), Keeta's initiative harms the operation of establishments and deregulates the Brazilian delivery market. The association has received complaints from several chains about this practice.
“We don’t view this initiative favorably, from an operational standpoint. We’ve already made it clear to Keeta that this affects the companies’ strategy, as they decide where they want to sell their products,” Blower told NeoFeed .
Keeta claims that it informs the customer that the purchase is mediated, but does not explicitly state that the platform has no partnership with the restaurant. According to the ANR executive, the explanations given to the consumer are insufficient.
“This process is unclear to the end customer, who is also not obligated to understand it. Doing this without an agreement guarantees resources for the platform, but without any alignment with the restaurant,” he states.
The biggest problem, according to Blower, is when there is a failure in the delivery process or a lack of some item. “The customer will be angry with the brand because they don't know that Keeta is responsible. The restaurant is left with its hands tied because it doesn't even know this customer exists. It can turn into chaos,” he says. “There's a vacuum that needs to be addressed.”
On the Reclame Aqui platform, there are complaints about the mediated purchase. In one case, from April of this year, the consumer says that the order placed in this format for purchase at the Outback chain, which is also not part of Keeta, was incorrect on two occasions.
“If you are an intermediary, the least you expect is that the order placed is replicated to the restaurant. But that's not what happens,” says the user on the website. In response, Keeta apologizes and states that it has made a partial refund of the purchase.
Outback even posted on its social media channels a recommendation that purchases should only be made through its official delivery channels, which are iFood and 99Food.
According to lawyer Sidnei Amendoeira, president of the franchise commission of the São Paulo subsection of the Brazilian Bar Association (OAB-SP), Keeta's measure is illegal and exposes the network to a problem it did not create.
“There is trademark protection. No one can use it. In this mediated purchase, the platform uses the brand without authorization. This is a problem and violates the law. And it also harms the consumer, because this is not clear,” he states.
“In a normal situation, it’s possible to hold the restaurant responsible. In this format, the restaurant doesn’t know who the order was for. If the platform doesn’t deliver the order, it’s responsible. There are many problems with this format,” the lawyer added.
The delivery market in Brazil currently generates R$ 79 billion, according to data from Getnet . According to ANR, Brazil currently has around 450,000 restaurants, not counting those registered as MEI (Individual Microentrepreneur). The delivery channel represents nearly 25% of the sector's revenue.
In a statement, Giraffas reported that it "notified Keeta legally after identifying the misuse of the brand on the platform, without any contract or authorization between the parties."
He further explained: "There are no records of consumer complaints on Giraffas' platforms. As there is no partnership with Keeta, we have no visibility into any complaints registered on their platform."
The Pizza Hut chain stated that it "does not comment on ongoing legal proceedings."
Contacted by NeoFeed , Keeta stated that "the 'intermediated purchase' reflects a commitment to expanding the options available to consumers, while also generating new opportunities for partner restaurants and delivery drivers."
"This is an initiative developed specifically for Brazil and operates in compliance with all applicable local laws and regulations," he added.
