Connecticut’s Attorney General Richard Blumenthal seems to think that Apple and Amazon may be enjoying an unfair advantage in the e-book market and has accused the two companies of price fixing.
Blumenthal has requested meetings with the tech giants in an effort to discuss the deals they have with massive e-book publishers Macmillan, Simon & Schuster, Hachette, HarperCollins and Penguin.
The AG says both companies have deals with the publishers that promise them the best e-book prices over any competition.
Such “most favored nation” clauses blocks the publishers from offering discounts deeper than what Apple or Amazon receives. While the deals are not illegal under current antitrust laws, they certainly fall into a gray area.
“The concerns are compounded, and hence potentially more troublesome, since this arrangement appears to be something that will be agreed to by the largest e-book publishers in the United States and two competitors who combined will likely command the greatest retail e-book share,” Blumenthal added, via CNNMoney.
Result for: attorney general
The Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) has accused the computer manufacturer Dell of ‘dishonest business practices’ this week, claiming that the company does not always honor its much advertised ‘next-day parts and labor warranty.’
CREW has created a new website as well with the banner posted below, and has asked any user that has been wronged by Dell to post any similar issues. The group has also formally complained to the DC Attorney General.
The group says that the manufacturer is advertising false claims and specifically notes a recent $3.35 million settlement in January over similar issues.
“According to its website, ‘Dell puts you back to work fast.’ But for many customers, including me, that simply is not true. If Dell won’t honor its warranties, CREW, with help from the public, will hold Dell accountable. When a consumer pays for next day service, she should receive next day service,” says CREW executive director Melanie Sloan.
“If people in 34 states had enough problems with Dell for state attorneys general to step in, and Dell still refused to honor my warranty after the company settled that matter, then other people likely are having problems with Dell right now. Honoring a warranty is a matter of ethics and at CREW, we take action when confronted with unethical conduct. We hope D.C. Attorney General Peter Nickles will share our concern that Dell is engaged in deceptive marketing practices by failing to honor its warranties and launch an immediate investigation.”
Result for: attorney general
Following three other companies before it, Hitachi has admitted to price fixing LCD displays, most of which were sold to Dell and Motorola.
Over the last few months, LG, Sharp and Chunghwa Picture Tubes have each admitted to price fixing the LCD market and were forced to pay fines ranging from $65 million USD for Chunghwa, to $400 million USD for LG, the largest group of the three.
According to the Department of Justice, Hitachi will cooperate with the ongoing investigation and will pay a $31 million USD fine for the price fixing of “TFT-LCD sold to Dell for use in desktop monitors and notebook computers from April 1, 2001, through March 31, 2004.”
“Hitachi joins three other multinational companies who have admitted to their involvement in fixing prices for LCD panels sold to U.S. companies and that have already paid criminal fines totaling more than $585 million,” added Scott D. Hammond, Acting Assistant Attorney General in charge of the Department’s Antitrust Division. “This case should send a strong message to multinational companies operating in the United States that when it comes to enforcing the U.S. antitrust laws we mean business.”
