34First of all, it should be pointed out that the connecting factors for determining the court with jurisdiction that are laid down in Article 7(1)(b) of Regulation No 1215/2012 are applicable only in so far as the national court hearing the dispute which has arisen between the parties that entered into a long-standing business relationship with each other comes to the conclusion that that relationship is founded on a ‘contract for the sale of goods’ or a ‘contract for the provision of services’, for the purposes of that provision. Such a classification would exclude the application of the rule of jurisdiction laid down in Article 7(1)(a) thereof. In view of the hierarchy which Article 5(1)(c) establishes between Article 5(1)(a) and (b), the rule of jurisdiction laid down in Article 5(1)(a) is intended to apply only in the alternative and if the rules of jurisdiction in Article 5(1)(b) do not apply (see, to that effect, judgment of 14 July 2016, Granarolo, C‑196/15, EU:C:2016:559, paragraphs 30 and 31 and the case-law cited).
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