Amazon and Apple 'Colluded' to Make iPhone and iPad More Expensive, Says Antitrust Lawsuit

[MacRumors]

Apple and Amazon worked together to raise the price of iPhones and iPads by eliminating third-party Amazon sellers who offered Apple products at a lower cost, according to a new antitrust lawsuit filed today in Washington.

The complaint, filed by Hagens Berman law firm, says that Apple and Amazon had an "unlawful horizontal agreement" that reduced the "competitive threat posed by third-party merchants," a violation of federal antitrust laws. There were around 600 third-party sellers of Apple devices on Amazon Marketplace, which was whittled down to just seven.

Amazon began eliminating third-party sellers after it signed a 2019 deal with Apple to limit the number of resellers on Amazon marketplace to 20 per country. In exchange, Apple provided Amazon with a discounted wholesale price for iPhones and iPads.

By restricting third-party sellers from offering Apple products, Amazon made itself the dominant seller of Apple products on Amazon Marketplace, which Amazon and Apple both "stood to benefit from" even though it "would harm the public."

The lawsuit claims that prior to the agreement, third-party resellers were offering "prices steeply discounted" from those Apple wanted to have for its online storefront, which resulted in lower prices for consumers. There is no word on specific devices that went up in price due to the agreement, and no explanation of whether sellers were offering older devices or current products, nor if these were refurbished devices.

"When Apple and Amazon renewed their existing reseller agreement in 2019, the only losing party to their plan was consumers, who were blindsided by the price increases," Berman said. "Where consumers used to be able to find discounted prices of upwards of 20% for iPhones and iPads for sale on Amazon Marketplace, now they get locked into Apple's premium pricing."

Hagens Berman is aiming for an injunction to prevent Amazon from blocking third-party Apple resellers and reimbursement for consumers who "overpaid for iPhones and iPads."

Article Link: Amazon and Apple 'Colluded' to Make iPhone and iPad More Expensive, Says Antitrust Lawsuit

 

[I7guy]

Good luck. Eliminating shoddy sellers gets you a lawsuit. IMO, this should get shutdown, pronto!

 

[STOCK411]

uhh, its so people dont order apple devices from sketchy people....


Lawsuit should get tossd

 

[RFolk]

yeah, what else is new ?

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Too bad there are other websites like Wish.com or Alibaba.com that offers at a much lower cost. Widely known!

 

[WiiDSmoker]

uhh, its so people dont order apple devices from sketchy people....


Lawsuit should get tossd

No this isn't true at all. Please read again.

 

[genovelle]

Because many of the devices being sold this way were stolen or counterfeit. There was no way to police it.

 

[Love-hate 🍏 relationship]

wow that's nasty

 

[killawat]

So I can sell iPhones for $20 cheaper and Amazon has to let me on their site? Nice!

 

[appleguy123]

This might be true, but I’ve noticed much better sales for Apple products on Amazon since this deal went through. We never had sales like this when Amazon was primarily a 3rd party hub for potentially fake Apple products.

 

[cjbriare]

NOW where am I gonna get my Ample I-phone ProPlus Maxx 14 from trusted amazon seller bigphongus34756325

 

[ZZ Bottom]

Look there are probably a few sellers that are on the level and willing to take lower margins, but we all know that Amazon is plagued with no shortage of ****** sellers.

It’s not so bad when it’s fulfilled by Amazon, but grandma doesn’t always know they’re getting bilked by a fulfilled by third party that isn’t on the level.

 

[Whathappened]

uhh, its so people dont order apple devices from sketchy people....


Lawsuit should get tossd

Forbidding more than 20 resellers is something else than forbidding sketchy resellers.

 

[cocky jeremy]

Who cares. There are tons of other sites to sell Apple stuff on.

 

[dguisinger]

Good, now get rid of all the other 3rd party sellers.
I've been getting so frustrated with every product I buy from Amazon defaulting to a 3rd party seller even when Amazon carries the product themselves.

I'm sorry, I'm buying from Amazon because I trust them to deliver the official product. If I wanted a small seller from China, well, I'd probably step out in front of traffic.

 

[Wildkraut]

So I can sell iPhones for $20 cheaper and Amazon has to let me on their site? Nice!

No, it’s about the gravity and amount of customers Amazon has, which turns them anticompetitive.

EU’s Digital Market Act and Digital Services Act will come after them anyway. 🤣

 

[TheYayAreaLiving 🎗️]

Is it just me? Sometimes I feel not ethically right to buy stuff on Amazon anymore. Sometimes it's sketchy and shady.

 

[PlayUltimate]

Is it just me? Sometimes I feel not ethically right to buy stuff on Amazon anymore. Sometimes it's sketchy and shady.

I recently bought a Speck case for my iPhone. I did look on amazon but the price was the same on the Speck website so I bought it there. I have found that Amazon does not always have the best prices.

 

[bobenhaus]

Ohh Apple has been a bad company again!. Uh oooh. Gov need to teach Apple an lesson for sure.

 

[Wildkraut]

Is it just me? Sometimes I feel not ethically right to buy stuff on Amazon anymore. Sometimes it's sketchy and shady.

No it’s not just you. I would prefer to support local stores, but local stores ain’t much better.
E.g. customer service of local stores is often below the bar, consultation is just reading the spec on the backside of the box, as if customers can’t read.
When you try to return something, it usually ends with a longer stressful discussion and a coupon instead of full money back, etc.

Well, with Amazon it’s simply comfortable to order and return, the item research you have to do anyway.

 

[jhwalker]

Given Apple doesn't sell in bulk at a steep discount to resellers, the majority of these had to be shady / counterfeit / stolen / old stock, etc. Sounds like Amazon and Apple worked together to make a better, more reliable market 🤷‍♂️

 

[JM]

What are those disgusting phones in the picture that cost $799 and $899.

🤮 they cost way too much.

 

[nwcs]

What should be of more consumer interest is disallowing MAP pricing. That’s effectively legal price fixing.

 

[ralphdaily]

I’m tired of these lawsuits. Probably Tim is too.

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[Biro]

Oh, boo-hoo! If I don't like the sale price at Apple or Amazon, I can go to my local Best Buy or any number of wireless carriers. Sounds like an ambulance-chasing law firm trying to drum up publicity for itself. Don't do me any favors.