(Image source from: Samsung)

Gadget and gizmo freaks, scouring e-stores for dishy discounts on their buys, will now have to flock to real-time retailers to pick their latest mobile phones or DSLRs. That's right!

Leading electronic brands like Sony, Samsung, Panasonic and others are out to crack down on stores selling their products online by threatening to stop supplies or penalize them heavily, in a bid to curb the practice of 'predatory' discounts.

Lenovo and Canon, along with the three brands mentioned above, have already issued trade advisories banning stores from selling their products online directly or indirectly via e-commerce companies.

The huge difference in prices offered by popular online shopping sites like Flipkart, Amazon and Snapdeal and their offline counterparts have worsened the woes of electronic goods makers in India.

As most companies grapple to deal with their slipping store sales, manufacturers are coming down heavily on e-tailers now. They allege that while some offline traders and distributors list products on online marketplaces and sell them at lower margins, others list products at the manufacturer recommended price, but the host website ends up offering deep discounts by way of coupons and cashback schemes, creating a wide gap in pricing between products available online and offline.

"We are trying to weed out unhygienic practices to create a healthy environment between online and offline markets," said Amar Babu, managing director at Lenovo India.

AW: Suchorita Choudhury