Apple appeals verdict, punishment in e-book antitrust case
Apple on Thursday formally notified the court that they will appeal the guilty verdict and resulting injunctions handed down in July's e-book antitrust ruling.
Apple's fight against the Department of Justice will shift into the hands of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals as Cupertino's lead attorney, Orin Snyder, filed an official notice of appeal Thursday on behalf of the iPhone maker. Snyder previously indicated the company's plans to appeal in an August letter to Judge Denise Cote.
The notice comes nearly three months after Apple was found guilty of conspiring with major publishers to raise e-book prices and just one day before an injunction handed down as a result of the verdict was set to go into effect. The injunction would force Apple to stagger contract renegotiations with publishers and bring on an external compliance monitor, among other punishments.
"Notice is hereby given that Defendant Apple Inc. (?Apple?) appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from the Plaintiff United States? Final Judgment," Snyder wrote, "including the injunction the Court entered against Apple."
Apple is not required to submit its formal arguments for the appeal until early 2014, according to GigaOm.
On Friday, publisher Simon & Schuster filed a separate notice of appeal, though the CBS subsidiary only intends to fight the injunction due to its effect on the company's ability to renegotiate its contracts with Apple. Simon & Schuster settled with the Department of Justice in 2012.
Apple's fight against the Department of Justice will shift into the hands of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals as Cupertino's lead attorney, Orin Snyder, filed an official notice of appeal Thursday on behalf of the iPhone maker. Snyder previously indicated the company's plans to appeal in an August letter to Judge Denise Cote.
The notice comes nearly three months after Apple was found guilty of conspiring with major publishers to raise e-book prices and just one day before an injunction handed down as a result of the verdict was set to go into effect. The injunction would force Apple to stagger contract renegotiations with publishers and bring on an external compliance monitor, among other punishments.
"Notice is hereby given that Defendant Apple Inc. (?Apple?) appeals to the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from the Plaintiff United States? Final Judgment," Snyder wrote, "including the injunction the Court entered against Apple."
Apple is not required to submit its formal arguments for the appeal until early 2014, according to GigaOm.
On Friday, publisher Simon & Schuster filed a separate notice of appeal, though the CBS subsidiary only intends to fight the injunction due to its effect on the company's ability to renegotiate its contracts with Apple. Simon & Schuster settled with the Department of Justice in 2012.
Comments
Just move on - it is what it is - and move forward!
Meanwhile in France, the government raises Amazon's overall book prices to encourage competition:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/oct/03/french-mps-bill-amazon-discount-books
"Since 1981 French law has fixed book-prices so that readers pay the same whether they buy online, from a big high street chain, or from a small bookseller. Extensive discounting is banned.
The law, which applies to all online booksellers, does allow for a small amount of discounting – as long as it is no more than 5%. Small booksellers argue they cannot compete with Amazon because it provides free postage and free fast delivery deals on top of 5% discount."
So if Apple can't compete with Amazon because their prices are too low to make a viable business out of it and takes steps to keep the business healthy, they are punished. In France, it's the law to fix the prices.
The problem is, they're both right. If retailers collude with suppliers to keep prices high then it costs consumers more and free market competition can't do anything about it. If big retailers use their infrastructure to price things so cheaply that smaller businesses can't compete with them, they'll drive them out of business very easily and people will lose jobs.
Implementing laws one way or the other and punishing selectively isn't the right thing to do but they can't keep the prices low enough to avoid harming consumers and high enough to encourage competition at the same time.
"Since 1981 French law has fixed book-prices so <...>
Thank you, Marvin, but with this formulation the US reader will provably be confirmed in his view that France is a communist country !
The price is not fixed by law (or the government) ! It is fixed by the publisher, but is unique, this is what the law says.
The 1981 law has been recently reinforced in the sense that Amazon can no longer offer for free the delivery of "physical" books, which was Amazon tactic to circumvent the law.
The US reader also has to know that one of the reasons why Amazon could do this is that it supported in France a lower tax scheme than the other "normal" (what you call "brick and mortar", I believe) distributors ... (it still does, by the way, because changing this would require a decision at European level)
Good grief! I thought this was finally over. Let it go already!
Giving Amazon a monopoly on book pricing where they sell the books below cost just to sell their Kindles is not a fair judgement. The authors are getting screwed and so is Amazon's competition. The Justice Department seems to feel an Amazon ebook store monopoly is the only solution. I applaud Apple to not just "let it go already"
How about no, we don’t let the truth be covered up and innocents be punished, okay?
How about no, we don’t let the truth be covered up and innocents be punished, okay?
For once I agree with you, the truth should come out and the innocent book buyers that had book prices jump up overnight due to Apple's shenanigans shouldn't be punished and should get their money back!
HOW about YES and let this massive corporation stop pretending its greedy for its shareholders and just move forward - i would respect a company that said "we don't agree but in the interest of progress we will move forward"...
Unless you are appealing the damage - but they are appealing both the verdict too - LET THE VERDICT STAND AND MOVE ON!
Unless you are appealing the damage - but they are appealing both the verdict too - LET THE VERDICT STAND AND MOVE ON!
How about no, we get the truth to come out in court and no, we stop the FUD on forums.
I can do this all year. Stop lying.
Apple being a “massive corporation” is meaningless. Apple doesn’t really care about its shareholders any more than it has to. They care, however, about Amazon getting away with what Apple was WRONGFULLY accused of doing.
They got caught they are not the first or will they be the last.
I love my iPad and macs don't get me wrong...
But Apple is about making money pure and simple.
They are the same as Exxon, Pepsi and every other share holders company - profit profit and sometimes the ethical lines get blurred.
I work as a deposition videographer and this is not my first time seeing this with apple or every other company. Been doing this for over 17 years.
So if you want to believe there were honest and no evil exists in any man behind the executive throne then by all means go ahead.
That's your choice.
They just look foolish trying to appeal a Verdict then being bigger and moving on.
Yeah, it’s amazing that you think Amazon isn’t guilty of this.
Doing nothing wrong.
Are you even trying anymore?
Thanks for intimating that you know nothing about what Apple is. Don’t comment on Apple again.
Apple is guilty plain and simple.
Next!
Giving Amazon a monopoly on book pricing where they sell the books below cost just to sell their Kindles is not a fair judgement. The authors are getting screwed and so is Amazon's competition. The Justice Department seems to feel an Amazon ebook store monopoly is the only solution. I applaud Apple to not just "let it go already"
How does Amazon "have a monopoly"?
Of.
What.
90% market share prior to Apple.
And there's another troll meme.
Apple is guilty plain and simple.
Next!
Samsung is guilty plain and simple. They should just pay Apple the $1 billion plus fine they owe and move on.
Next!