MOSCOW, March 7 (RAPSI) – The Russian Supreme Court has upheld the lawfulness of a Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) decision warning the Moscow State University (MSU) that its banner “MSU is the best higher education establishment in Russia” placed on its main building violated the antimonopoly law, the court documents read on Thursday.

According to FAS, the banner failed to present specific comparison criteria or objective evidence supporting the claim and therefore could be viewed as an act of unfair competition on the market of educational services.

In March 2018, the Moscow Commercial Court ruled that the wording of the banner implied that there were worse establishments, which could not present themselves as being on par with the MSU.

According to the court’s decision, the Moscow University even as a non-profit institution had to comply with the antimonopoly law. MSU provided some of its educational services for a fee, therefore it carried out income-generating activities, the court ruled.