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Nintendo Fined $143m for Price-Fixing

Posted by michael on from the fine-to-be-paid-in-gold-coins dept.

kyz writes "The BBC is reporting that the anti-trust branch of the European Commission has fined Nintendo 146 million euros (roughly $143m) for preventing its distributors from selling games as cheaply as they are sold in other European Union countries. For example, "prices of Nintendo products were up to 65% higher in Germany or the Netherlands than in Britain". Now if only the EU could do this with Microsoft, Levi Strauss and the MPAA members..."

9 of 428 comments (clear)

  1. Good for them by Raul654 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Disclaimer: I am not one of those people you see protesting around every IMF meetings

    With that said, I swear to god, multinational cooperations have no conscience. Turn on the news, and all you see is the Enrons, Microsofts, and all these other coopertions who do everything they can to screw the consumer and their employees to make an extra penny. Good for the Europeans, bout damn time someone smacked those companies down, even if it is one with good Karma like nintendo.

    --


    To make laws that man cannot, and will not obey, serves to bring all law into contempt.
    --E.C. Stanton
    1. Re:Good for them by tswinzig · · Score: 5, Insightful

      Turn on the news

      There's your first problem... you watch the news.

      and all you see is the Enrons, Microsofts, and all these other coopertions who do everything they can to screw the consumer and their employees to make an extra penny.

      Bad news sells.

      Of course you don't hear about the plethora of companies that do good things, act humanely, have scruples, etc... they do exist, and I'd wager they outnumber the enrons of the world.

      Bad news sells.

      --

      "And like that ... he's gone."
  2. So... by elphkotm · · Score: 5, Insightful

    If Nintendo sells units for more money in a country with less demand, it's illegal? Price-fixing? Nintendo competes in one of the fiercest markets around. *BOGGLE*

    --

    <Amanda`> I just went out to the parking lot in my bathrobe to exchange warez CDs.
    1. Re:So... by NineNine · · Score: 5, Insightful

      No, what they were doing is telling their *distributors* what they could sell 'em for. The thing is, at least with real merchandise (as opposed to say, software), when you buy something, you own it, and can sell it for whatever you'd like to sell it for.

    2. Re:So... by mccalli · · Score: 5, Insightful
      If Nintendo sells units for more money in a country with less demand, it's illegal?

      Not what the ruling's about. The ruling isn't about price per se, it's about controlling the distribution.

      What Nintendo were doing was selling a game for x in the UK, and the same game for x+5 in, say, France. Perfectly legal.

      The trouble is that they were then trying to prevent French consumers from buying in Britain and importing directly into France. Now, the EU is an internal free-trade area, so controlling imports between member states is a big no-no.

      That's the case. Not the price as such, but the control of distribution across member state boundaries.

      Cheers,
      Ian

  3. I wonder when... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    They will fine the DVD consortium for region coding. I'm sure that it's cheaper to buy american DVDs than the the euro ones that are likely released much later.

  4. Re:Basic rights by lamz · · Score: 5, Insightful

    It seems like it has more to do with the open trade policies within the EU than it does with Nintendo.

    You're absolutely right. Unfortunately, it has lately become fashionable to hate corporations. Personally, I find it mind-boggling that someone can hate a corporation but NOT hate government for the same reasons. My government takes 55% of my income EVERY year. Compared to that, Nintendo isn't even a minor concern.

    --

    Mike van Lammeren
    It will challenge your head, your brain, and your mind.

  5. Re:$143 million dollars? by Directrix1 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Lets see, they just lost $143 million dollars? So now, is this going to make them drop the prices in the other countries or raise the prices in the countries that were getting the games at good rates. I wonder.

    --
    Occam's razor is the blind faith in the natural selection of least resistance and in universal oversimplification. -- EF
  6. Re:No surprise by Sentry21 · · Score: 5, Insightful

    While I know that prices in the UK are usually high, the figures quoted are irrelevant for a simple reason: if you're going to compare, compare against one country, and take things into account. The UK taxes cigarettes far more than most countries do (as I recall) - are taxes an issue? Germany is famous for its beer - is the beer in both situations made by the same company, so that you're having a fair comparison of products? If so, what about shipping costs and so on?

    Even here in Canada, you can get a pre-cooked shrimp ring for about $9.99 in BC, $8.99 in Saskatchewan, and $4.99 in New Brunswick, all the same brand. You can also get $10 shrimp rings in New Brunswick from more widely known (i.e. larger, better) brands. Is this because people in BC get 'screwed', or because it costs a lot of money to ship refrigerated shrimp ten thousand kilometers?

    If you're going to compare, you have to take more factors than just the price into account - local economy, shipping, VAT, local taxes, and so on. Is the US getting screwed because a BK Whopper costs more there than here? No, we just have cheaper beef, and a lower (but stronger) economy, so prices are less. It's good sense, and sensible economics.

    --Dan