After months of negotiations…

The Procter & Gamble Company has reached an agreement with Unilever to settle all issues related to disclosure of competitive business information. Terms of the agreement were not disclosed. However, according to sources, P&G will pay Unilever $10 million as part of the settlement.

P&G chairman John E. Pepper said, “We believe the agreement protects both P&G’s and Unilever’s business interests. I have been personally involved in ensuring that none of the information has been or will be used in any P&G plans. This agreement will have no impact on the effectiveness of our product or marketing plans and will not inhibit fair and vigorous competition in the marketplace.”

Mr. Pepper continued, “This was an unfortunate incident. The activities were not in keeping with P&G principles and policies. We’re convinced we did the right thing by voluntarily and promptly making Unilever aware of this incident, quarantining the information and working with them to protect their interests. We expect this agreement will bring this situation to an end so we can focus fully on serving consumers and building our business.”