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Apple Found Guilty of Russian Price-Fixing (bbc.com)

Posted by msmash on from the price-fixing dept.

An anonymous reader shares a BBC report: Russia's competition watchdog has found that Apple fixed the prices of certain iPhone models sold in the country. The Federal Anti-Monopoly Service (Fas) said that Apple's local subsidiary told 16 retailers to maintain the recommended prices of phones in the iPhone 5 and iPhone 6 families. Non-compliance with the pricing guidelines may have led to the termination of contracts, it found. At the time of the investigation, Apple denied that it controlled its products' pricing, telling Reuters that resellers "set their own prices for the Apple products they sell in Russia and around the world." The regulator said Apple had now ended its price-fixing practices but has not said whether the company faces a fine. The FAS claimed that Apple Rus monitored the retail prices for the iPhone 5c, 5s, 6, 6 Plus, 6s and 6s Plus.

7 of 49 comments (clear)

  1. My GOD! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Funny

    I wondered why my Russians were so expensive!

  2. Re:Why even have 3rd party dealers / distributions by ShanghaiBill · · Score: 2

    Why even have 3rd party dealers / distributions?

    Because it is not economically feasible to build an Apple Store in every town and village. Selling on-line doesn't work so well in countries where packages are routinely stolen.

  3. editors, please. by supernova87a · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Cmon, editors, you need to think about these stories before you blindly post them with stupid, uninformed headlines.

    Apple dictating to its retailers what prices to offer for their own manufactured phones is not "price fixing". Price fixing in the traditional sense is when competitors in a market collude to artificially set the price of a good that they otherwise should be competing on, which deprives the free market of alternatives.

    This is a case of Apple setting its own product's pricing. And something is being lost from the Russian story and what they mean by things like Recommended Retail Price / MSRP, but this is not "price fixing". Please use some judgment before using inflammatory / inflated headlines.

    1. Re:editors, please. by Solandri · · Score: 2

      MSRP is common, as is a MAP (minimum advertised price - this is why you'll sometimes see sales saying "place in cart to see price"). But some manufacturers try to enforce a minimum selling price, which is outlawed in many countries. Apple can set its own price to the retailers, but the retailers must be allowed to set their own prices - even if it means selling the product at a loss.

  4. Not the first time ... by CaptainDork · · Score: 4, Informative

    Apple Fined $670,000 In Taiwan For Price Fixing in 2013

    --
    It little behooves the best of us to comment on the rest of us.
  5. Re:Commenters, please. by MatthiasF · · Score: 2

    Actually, the exact opposite happened in 2007.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06...

    The Supreme Court STRUCK DOWN an antitrust rule AGAINST minimum retail prices.

  6. Re:Price fixing? by fred6666 · · Score: 2

    Not allowing retailers to sell for profits below or beyond what Apple dictates is not illegal either.

    Yes it is, or at least should be in any civilized country.