Apple guilty in e-book price fixing: Judge
People walk past the Apple store at Grand Central Terminal in New York City on January 25, 2013. Apple shares slid about 12 percent a day earlier after the tech giant posted record profits and sales of its iPhones and iPads, but offered a disappointing forecast for the coming months.
A New York judge on Wednesday found Apple guilty in a giant e-book price-fixing deal that cost buyers millions of dollars, accusing the technology giant of having “facilitated a conspiracy," according to TIME.
The Guardian called the case one of "the biggest anti-trust lawsuits ever brought by US federal authorities," involving not just Apple but also six of the largest US publishing houses (though many settled with Justice before this went to court).
US district judge Denise Cote charged Apple with having "conspired to restrain trade," according to BBC News. Apple is reportedly planning to appeal the decision.
Cote said defendants had agreed to "eliminate retail price competition in order to raise e-book prices," saying "Apple played a central role in facilitating and executing that conspiracy," even going so far as to claim that without the company's "orchestration" the plan "would not have succeeded," reported the BBC. Read Cote's opinion in full here.
TIME described the ruling as "a major victory for the US government," and one that "could have important implications for the digital media market."
Apple spokesman Tom Neumayr told the BBC that Apple will continue to fight against what he called "false allegations."
A new hearing has been ordered to detail damages owed, said The Guardian.