The US Attorney General has filed a civil antitrust action against Apple and a number of publishers, accusing them of colluding to sell e-books for higher prices.
In a filing submitted yesterday in New York, the US Justice Department accused Apple and a range of publishers - including HarperCollins Publishers and Hachette Book Group - of limiting price competition by changing the way e-books were sold. The filing claims Apple and the publishers agreed to alter the existing business model for selling e-books and tablets, replacing the wholesale retail model with a system that saw publishers appoint retail groups as agents, who were powerless to cut prices. The Attorney General alleges the move was done to combat Amazon - the online retailer - wh...
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