|
In
his ruling, U.S. District Judge John Coughenour rejected bids
from Apple and Amazon to dismiss the prospective class action on
various legal grounds.
Coughenour said the "validity" of the relevant market, a central
issue in antitrust litigation, was a question for a jury.
The lawsuit, filed in November, is among 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.
Lawyers for Apple and Amazon and representatives for the
companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment on
Friday.
Steve Berman, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, called the court's
ruling "a major win for consumers of Apple phones and iPads."
The plaintiffs are U.S. residents who bought new iPhones and
iPads on Amazon beginning in January 2019. They contend 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, according to the lawsuit, there were some 600
third-party Apple resellers on Amazon. Apple agreed to give
Amazon a discount on its products if Amazon reduced the number
of Apple resellers from its marketplace, the lawsuit alleged.
Apple has argued that its agreement with Amazon limited the
number of authorized resellers to help minimize counterfeit
Apple goods being sold on the e-commerce platform.
In a court filing, Apple's attorneys called the agreement
"commonplace" and said the "Supreme Court and Ninth Circuit have
routinely recognized 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.
Apple recorded $94.8 billion in sales in the second quarter, and
Amazon reported $127.4 billion in its most recent quarterly
earnings report.
The complaint seeks unspecified triple damages and other relief.
The case is Steven Floyd v Amazon.com Inc and Apple Inc, U.S.
District Court, Western District of Washington, No.
2:22-cv-01599-JCC.
Read more:
Apple, Epic ask US appeals court to reconsider its antitrust
ruling
Amazon loses bid to toss consumer antitrust lawsuit
Lawsuit claims Apple, Amazon colluded to raise iPhone, iPad
prices
(Reporting by Mike Scarcella; editing by Leigh Jones)
[© 2023 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Thompson Reuters is solely responsible for this content.
|
|
