Apple and Amazon.com are facing a consumer antitrust lawsuit in US court for allegedly conspiring to artificially increase the price of iPhones and iPads sold on Amazon’s platform. US District Judge John Coughenour rejected bids from both companies to dismiss the prospective class action on various legal grounds. Coughenour stated that the “validity” of the relevant market, a central issue in antitrust litigation, was a question for a jury. The lawsuit, filed in November, is one of several private and government actions challenging Amazon’s online price practices. Coughenour’s ruling means the case will move forward to evidence-gathering and other pretrial proceedings.
The plaintiffs in the case are US residents who purchased new iPhones and iPads on Amazon beginning in January 2019. They contend that an agreement between Apple and Amazon that went into effect that year restricted the number of competitive resellers in violation of antitrust provisions. In 2018, there were reportedly 600 third-party Apple resellers on Amazon. The lawsuit alleges that Apple provided Amazon with a discount on its products in exchange for Amazon reducing the number of Apple resellers from its marketplace.
Apple has argued that its agreement with Amazon limited the number of authorised resellers to prevent counterfeit Apple goods from being sold on the e-commerce platform. Apple’s lawyers called the agreement “commonplace” in a court filing and stated that “the Supreme Court and Ninth Circuit have routinely recognised that such agreements are procompetitive and lawful.” The judge in Seattle said “countervailing” motivations for the agreement between Apple and Amazon would be addressed later in the litigation.
The complaint seeks unspecified triple damages and other relief. Apple recorded $94.8 billion in sales in the second quarter, and Amazon reported $127.4 billion in its most recent quarterly earnings report.
Apple’s annual developer conference, WWDC 2023, is coming up soon. From the company’s first mixed reality headset to new software updates, the Gadgets 360 podcast, Orbital, discusses all the things we’re looking forward to seeing at the event. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, and wherever you get your podcasts.
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Alex Smith is a writer and editor with over 10 years of experience. He has written extensively on a variety of topics, including technology, business, and personal finance. His work has been published in a number of magazines and newspapers, and he is also the author of two books. Alex is passionate about helping people learn and grow, and he believes that writing is a powerful tool for communication and understanding.
