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Apple filed a formal appeal on Tuesday asking the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to overturn the ruling of its e-books antitrust case or to be awarded a new trial on the matter, reports the Associated Press.

In its filing, Apple stated that U.S. District Judge Denise Cote's original decision to find the company guilty of conspiring to fix e-book prices was a "radical departure" compared to modern antitrust law, adding that the decision would harm consumers and negate competition if not overturned.
Apple's papers filed Tuesday refuted the antitrust finding, and said its entrance into the e-book market "kick-started competition in a highly concentrated market, delivering higher output, lower price levels, and accelerated innovation."
Apple also requested that the appeals court suspend the work of external antitrust compliance monitor Michael Bromwich until it makes a decision as to whether he was correctly appointed. Apple filed a formal complaint against Bromwich in November claiming that the monitor was overcharging them for his services, and requested that he be removed from his position in January.

While Apple managed to win a brief emergency reprieve from monitoring, the Appeals court ruled earlier this month that Bromwich could continue his work with new boundaries, as he is no longer able to demand access to any document or interview Apple executives with respect to any subject.

Article Link: Apple Files Formal Appeal in E-Books Antitrust Case
 

cdmoore74

macrumors 68020
Jun 24, 2010
2,413
711
The more times I hear about Apple moaning about this monitor the more I think Apple is trying to hide something.
 

Rogifan

macrumors Penryn
Nov 14, 2011
24,084
31,015
Good. I don't trust this DOJ. Take if to the Suoreme Court if necessary.
 

mw360

macrumors 68020
Aug 15, 2010
2,032
2,395
The more times I hear about Apple moaning about this monitor the more I think Apple is trying to hide something.

Of course they are - all of their upcoming products, services, deals and negotiations.
 

Ivan0310

macrumors member
Mar 1, 2011
97
72
Dallas, TX
The more times I hear about Apple moaning about this monitor the more I think Apple is trying to hide something.

What would you do as a company concerning a court-ruling which hurts your public image and may hurt future revenues? Sit down and take it, or fight it? Their recent actions really have less to do with moral standing than logical business practice.
 

2457282

Suspended
Dec 6, 2012
3,327
3,015
What would you do as a company concerning a court-ruling which hurts your public image and may hurt future revenues? Sit down and take it, or fight it? Their recent actions really have less to do with moral standing than logical business practice.

I find the whole thing a bit strange. As I followed this in the news, my impression was that Apple would win this case. My take was that they had a different model than Amazon; essentially using the same model they used for music. A proven practice that made sense. I was surprised when the court ruled against them. I was even more surprised by the whole auditor issue. I agree that it makes a lot of sense for Apple to continue fighting this. If they lose, what model will Apple have to resort to? Back to Amazon price setting model? I really hope not.
 

samcraig

macrumors P6
Jun 22, 2009
16,779
41,982
USA
I'm not surprised they filed the appeal. No one should be. It's smart business. However I have little faith that they'll overturn the verdict or that they didn't engage in some dodgy practices based on all the evidence presented.
 

sirozha

macrumors 68000
Jan 4, 2008
1,927
2,327
I don't quite get Apple's strategy for eBooks. Amazon has a much wider selection and in most cases significantly better pricing.

It's true that Amazon uses a proprietary standard for eBooks, but even though Apple uses ePub, the books they sell are DRMed. Therefore, the books purchased on the iBooks cannot be loaned to friends, etc. like a paper book could. Therefore, the format really doesn't matter.

Both Amazon and Apple have similar offerings with the release of OS 10.9 with the ability to sync books, bookmarks, notes, etc. across mobile devices and computers - that is if you use Apple devices. Amazon has this ability across all types of devices - not just Apple ones.

So, how did Apple's entry into the eBook market foster competition as most of their eBooks pricing is not competitive with Amazon's while the services and features are the same?

One would think Apple could at least price their iBooks competitively with Amazons. When you look at technical books, the price difference could be $15-$20 per book.
 

BaldiMac

macrumors G3
Jan 24, 2008
8,745
10,845
I don't quite get Apple's strategy for eBooks. Amazon has a much wider selection and in most cases significantly better pricing.

It's true that Amazon uses a proprietary standard for eBooks, but even though Apple uses ePub, the books they sell are DRMed. Therefore, the books purchased on the iBooks cannot be loaned to friends, etc. like a paper book could. Therefore, the format really doesn't matter.

Both Amazon and Apple have similar offerings with the release of OS 10.9 with the ability to sync books, bookmarks, notes, etc. across mobile devices and computers - that is if you use Apple devices. Amazon has this ability across all types of devices - not just Apple ones.

[...}

One would think Apple could at least price their iBooks competitively with Amazons. When you look at technical books, the price difference could be $15-$20 per book.

:D Maybe you missed the big lawsuit that the DOJ brought against Apple that ended Apple's strategy for eBooks, especially in regards to pricing.

So, how did Apple's entry into the eBook market foster competition as most of their eBooks pricing is not competitive with Amazon's while the services and features are the same?

By taking the focus of retail competition from price to platform and services. Which was immediately followed by a huge increase in competition in the market.
 

blarivee

macrumors 6502
Jun 29, 2009
370
1
US
Let's not forget the publishers settled with the DOJ. They may not have to admit any wrongdoing, it still raises the question that something illegal was going on.
 

sirozha

macrumors 68000
Jan 4, 2008
1,927
2,327
:D Maybe you missed the big lawsuit that the DOJ brought against Apple that ended Apple's strategy for eBooks, especially in regards to pricing.



By taking the focus of retail competition from price to platform and services. Which was immediately followed by a huge increase in competition in the market.

Please explain this. Platform and services vis-a-vis eBooks? Amazon had the platform and these same services when Steve Jobs was still dismissing eBooks because "no one reads books anymore."
 

BaldiMac

macrumors G3
Jan 24, 2008
8,745
10,845
Please explain this. Platform and services vis-a-vis eBooks? Amazon had the platform and these same services when Steve Jobs was still dismissing eBooks because "no one reads books anymore."

Agency pricing eliminated retail price competition for the most part, so consumers chose where to buy eBooks based on the retailers various platforms and services.
 

BaldiMac

macrumors G3
Jan 24, 2008
8,745
10,845
From Apple's filing:
“There is no evidence, and the district court did not find, that Apple had knowledge of the phone calls, meetings, and dinners among the publishers featured so prominently in the court’s ruling.”

To me, this is the pro-Apple argument in a nutshell.
 

sirozha

macrumors 68000
Jan 4, 2008
1,927
2,327
Agency pricing eliminated retail price competition for the most part, so consumers chose where to buy eBooks based on the retailers various platforms and services.

Are you saying that currently consumers are choosing to buy eBooks from the iBooks Store or from Amazon based on the platform and services affinity rather than based on the price?

I can see that some would choose to buy from Apple even if a book costs a few bucks more - I do that; however when a book costs $20 more on the iBooks Store than it does on Amazon, very few would remain loyal to Apple. I know I won't, and I don't.

If I were to strictly choose based on the platform and services, I would go with Amazon 100% of the time. Until OS 10.9, I couldn't even read eBooks purchased from Apple on any non-mobile device, while I could do that with Amazon eBooks. Even now, if I want to be able to read eBooks in Windows, I can't do it with Apple's eBooks. How hard would it be for them to release iBooks for Windows? That's why I said I don't understand their strategy.
 
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