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Originally Posted by calvin-c
Conviction, in a case like this, would more likely subject the company to oversight by the DOJ to insure they obey the law. If that 'wrecks' the company then I don't think it's a company that we want doing business in the US anyway. Settlement, OTOH, would likely mean the company would pay a monetary penalty & then continue with 'business as usual' to the detriment of its customers.
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The settlement with the publishers involved more than just a fine, including DOJ oversight. I'd expect any settlement with Apple to be similar. For example, from
this article at Digital Book World regarding the settlement with Macmillan:
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“As a result of today’s settlement, Macmillan has agreed to immediately allow retailers to lower the prices consumers pay for Macmillan’s e-books,” said Jamillia Ferris, Chief of Staff and Counsel at the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. “Just as consumers are already paying lower prices for the e-book versions of many of Hachette’s, HarperCollins’ and Simon & Schuster’s new releases and best sellers, we expect the prices of many of Macmillan’s e-books will also decline.”
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and
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Under the proposed settlement agreement, Macmillan will immediately lift restrictions it has imposed on discounting and other promotions by e-book retailers and will be prohibited until December 2014 from entering into new agreements with similar restrictions. The proposed settlement agreement also will impose a strong antitrust compliance program on Macmillan, including requirements that it provide advance notification to the department of any e-book ventures it plans to undertake jointly with other publishers and regularly report to the department on any communications it has with other publishers. Also for five years, Macmillan will be forbidden from agreeing to any kind of most favored nation (MFN) provision that could undermine the effectiveness of the settlement.
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