Turkey launches probe into Apple's alleged price fixing
Turkish authorities are investigating an accusation that Apple and local resellers set prices in contravention of anti-competition laws.
Apple Zorlu Center in Istanbul -- image credit: Apple
Apple has previously been accused of similar price fixing with Amazon in the UK, although a resulting lawsuit was dismissed. Now according to Turkey's Hurriyet Daily News, the country's competition regulator has announced a full investigation following initial research into suspected collusion over prices and promotion deals.
"The preliminary inquiry into Apple's influence on the pricing of resold computers, tablets, smartphones, headphones and accessories has been completed," said the Turkey Competition Board in a statement. "Based on the findings, a formal investigation has been initiated into Apple and its business partners."
The partners are the Turkish resellers:
- Easycep
- HB Bilisim
- Destek Bilisim
- Getmobil
Easycep is reportedly Turkey's largest reseller of refurbished electronics, while HB Bilisim is chiefly in the business of reselling products to corporations and retail. With these firms plus Destek Bilisim and Getmobil, Turkey's Competition Board suspects that Apple influences prices in contravention of the country's Law No. 4054 on the Protection of Competition.
It appears that Apple may be accused under Article 4 of that law, possibly amongst other sections. That article concerns price fixing and other issues where firms have undertaken agreements to set prices rather than following demand and market forces.
As part of this same investigation, Apple is accused along with other unnamed firms, of coordinating buyback prices for its products. This is to do with trade-in offers, and the claim is that Apple may be exerting unfair influence on the amounts firms will pay a user for their old devices.
There's no published schedule for how long the investigation is due to take, nor are there any details of how Apple may be required to provide evidence. The Competition Board does, though, specifically stress that launching the investigation does not imply that charges or penalties are automatically expected to follow.
If there are penalties, Turkey could fine Apple and its resellers up to 10% of their worldwide gross annual income in the year preceding the year when the violation occurred.
In a similar case in Italy in 2021, Apple was ultimately fined $152 million. In the same case, Amazon was fined $77.43 million.
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Comments
If I sell movie tickets in my theater, but I put in special projectors and air conditioning that no other theater has, I shouldn't be limited to what other theaters charge. The free hand of the market means I will go out of business if I charge too much or too little. That's not up to the government to say. Government can check the structure of my building and the quality of my popcorn for dangerous properties and then leave me alone!
When we fixate on pricing over all else we end up with Amazon as our only retail destination. If only the U.S. government had allowed Apple and book sellers to demand a living wage off their books Amazon wouldn't be the slave labor camp it is.