US Justice Dept accuses Apple of eBook Price Fixing

[tompe]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

Publishers had an easy way to stop Amazon from getting market control: Stop selling to Amazon. Or give other ebook stores--like Fictionwise, BoB, Diesel, AllRomanceEbooks--good enough terms to let them solidly compete, instead of picking a method that drove smaller stores out of business in the aftermath of the new pricing scheme.

Exactly how would that have worked? Alternative one would probably not have been acceptable relative to their relation with their authors. And alternative two would not have worked since Amazon just would have demanded better terms than the competition.

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

All they had to do was do it the way the airlines do it: one goes first and the rest follow suit days or weeks later. As long as there is no clearly concerted action they usually get away with it.

True. Hopefully it's not also a factor that airlines spend a lot more on lobbying and campaign contributions than publishers (to check this claim, try some searches at opensecrets.org).

Then there was the time that President Putman, of Braniff, recorded President Crandall, of American Airlines trying -- and failing -- to get some of that concerted action:

Crandall: Yes, I have a suggestion for you. Raise your goddam fares 20%. I'll raise mine the next morning.

Putnam: Robert, we...

Crandall: You'll make more money and I will too

Putnam: We can't talk about pricing.

Crandall: Oh [expletive], Howard. We can talk about any goddam thing we want to talk about.

I hope I have this right: American won in district court, lost at the first appellate level, and settled:

http://news.google.com/newspapers?ni...g=4091,4230343

Among other things, Crandall is required ''to consult with a company lawyer before communicating with officials of any other airline carrier and to make notes on all such conversations as well as any discussions with American's vendors and creditors pertaining to other airlines' fares,'' the department said. . . .

In a statement issued from its Fort Worth headquarters, American noted that the settlement ''involves no admission of liability by either the company or Mr. Crandall.''

So the anti-Apple crowd shouldn't get their hopes too high as to what happens next.

[DiapDealer]

It's a mistake to think of those who believe the DOJ are justified in pursuing this lawsuit as anti-Apple.

[Prestidigitweeze]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

It's a mistake to think of those who believe the DOJ are justified in pursuing this lawsuit as anti-Apple.

An excellent point.

[fjtorres]

Originally Posted by DiapDealer

It's a mistake to think of those who believe the DOJ are justified in pursuing this lawsuit as anti-Apple.

Correct.
Unless being pro-consumer is being Anti-Apple.

[ProfCrash]

More importantly, did anyone get their settlement money from the Publishers?

[DiapDealer]

Haven't heard a thing since those initial emails a while back.

[fjtorres]

Bet the lawyers all got paid nice and fast.

[SteveEisenberg]

Originally Posted by fjtorres

Bet the lawyers all got paid nice and fast.

So far, looks like you are correct:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...is-fiscal-year

Or were you talking about the defense attorneys?