DOJ

Australia next to take aim at Apple over e-book pricing?

Just one day after Apple was charged by the U.S. Department of Justice with artificially inflating e-book prices, a report out of Australia says competition watchdogs in that country are considering doing the same.

The Australia Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has asked local retailers who are concerned about e-book pricing to formally file a complaint with its office, according to The Australian Financial Review. The move could prove to be a precursor to a full investigation of Apple's e-book practices.

"Competition concerns may arise where traders seek to restrict the discounting of products by way of … Read more

DOJ is likely to lose e-book antitrust suit targeting Apple

news analysis The U.S. Justice Department's legal pursuit of Apple for alleged e-book price fixing stretches the boundaries of antitrust law and is likely to end in defeat.

That's what happened in 1982, when an embarrassed Justice Department admitted its antitrust lawsuit against IBM was "without merit" and abandoned the case. And in 2001, a federal appeals court nixed the Justice Department's ambitious attempt to rewrite antitrust law by carving Microsoft into two separate companies.

"It's a harder case against Apple than the publishers," says Geoffrey Manne, who teaches antitrust law … Read more

Why e-books cost so much

Here's something that tends to get lost in the debate over e-book prices: Paper doesn't cost very much.

There's a perception among consumers that an e-book should cost very little or next to nothing because there is no paper, printing, and shipping involved.

But in fact, for a new best-selling hardcover, all of the costs associated with print, from the printing to the shipping to the distribution to the warehousing to returns, amount to a mere few dollars per copy, depending on the size of the print run.

The vast majority of a publisher's costs come … Read more

The battle over e-book prices

Links from Wednesday's episode of Loaded:

Justice Dept. sues Apple, publishers Nokia Lumia 900 glitch triggers $100 credit Spotify Play Button Pinterest buttons on Amazon, eBay Jim Gaffigan follows DIY model for launch of "Mr. Universe" stand-up special Subscribe:  iTunes (MP3) |  iTunes (320x180) |  iTunes (HD) |  RSS (MP3) |  RSS (320x180) |  RSS HD

Multistate e-book pricing lawsuit seeks refunds for buyers

Alongside a federal lawsuit aimed at Apple and book publishers for allegedly colluding to fix e-book prices, 16 state attorneys general in the U.S. today filed a lawsuit against three publishers and Apple.

The complaint, which was filed in the District Court for the Western District of Texas, takes aim at the Penguin Group, Simon & Schuster, Macmillan, and Apple, and claims that the four companies worked together to raise prices on e-books, resulting in e-book buyers overpaying by some $100 million. (Disclosure: Simon & Schuster is owned by CBS, which also owns CNET.)

Unlike the federal suit on … Read more

Amazon says DOJ deal with book publishers win for Kindle owners

Apple is under federal investigation for allegedly colluding to fix e-book prices with book publishers.

Amazon is delighted...with the prospect of being enabled to once again lower prices.

"[The settlement] is a big win for Kindle owners," Amazon said in a statement. "We look forward to being allowed to lower prices on more Kindle books."

The U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust suit against Apple and several book publishers. The DOJ alleges that Apple and the publishers colluded in 2010 to fix e-book prices. Apple denies the allegations and has chosen to defend … Read more

DOJ announces three e-book settlements, but not with Apple

The U.S. Department of Justice confirmed today that it has reached antitrust settlements for alleged e-book price fixing with three large publishers -- but said Apple has chosen to fight the charges in court.

Attorney General Eric Holder said at a press conference this morning (see video below) that the settlement will provide retailers like Amazon and Barnes and Noble the "freedom to reduce the prices of their e-book titles" in the future.

Lagardere SCA's Hachette Book Group, News Corp.'s HarperCollins Publishers, and Simon & Schuster (owned by CBS, which publishes CNET) agreed to settle … Read more

This is why DOJ accused Apple of fixing e-book prices

In 2010, Apple enabled some of the top book publishers to set their own prices for electronic books they made available on the iPad.

Since then, prices that consumers pay for e-books have risen and Amazon and other online book sellers that discount have been under pressure. The government said today in an antitrust complaint filed in New York, that the arrangement Apple struck with publishers Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin, and Simon & Schuster was an attempt to control prices and violated the law.

The case could hurt Apple's position in the e-book market, a sector that is growing … Read more

Justice Dept. files suit against Apple, publishers over e-book pricing

The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against Apple and several book publishers this morning, claiming that they worked together to artificially prop up prices for e-books.

The publishers sued were Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin, and Simon & Schuster. The suit (posted below) was filed in a district court in New York.

"Apple facilitated the publisher defendants' collective effort to end retail price competition by coordinating their transition to an agency model across all retailers," according to the complaint.

Apple and Macmillan haven't engaged in settlement talks with the Justice Department, Bloomberg reported. The companies … Read more