In U.S. v. Frank Peake, District of Puerto Rico Judge Daniel Dominguez sentenced Sea Star Line LLC’s former president, Frank Peake, to five years in prison for his role in a conspiracy to manipulate the ocean-shipping company’s prices. According to the prosecutors, Sea Star, Peake and his unnamed co-conspirators schemed to inflate the rates and […]
Category Archives: Predatory Pricing
Court Imposes the Longest-Ever Antitrust Violation Prison Sentence for Ocean-Shipping Price-Fixing
December 20, 2013 – 10:46 pm
EU Inspects Electronic Manufacturers and Distributors Due To Suspicions of Online Price Manipulation
December 19, 2013 – 3:13 pm
The European Commission announced that it made several unannounced inspections at several companies active in the manufacture, distribution, and retail of consumer electronics throughout the European Union. Although the Commission did not publicly disclose the names of the companies, according to the Associated Press, the companies include Samsung Group, Royal Phillips NV, and Media-Saturn-Holding GmbH. […]
HP Files Antitrust Suit Over ODD Price-Fixing Scheme
October 29, 2013 – 2:23 pm
In Hewlett-Packard Co. v. LG Electronics Inc. et al., Hewlett-Packard Co. sued LG Electronics, Koninklijke Philips NV, Pioneer Corp., and various subsidiaries for their alleged involvement in a massive optical disc drive (“ODD”) price-fixing conspiracy. In its suit, HP claims that defendants violated the Sherman Act and California antitrust laws when they shared confidential business […]
Proposed Class Action Accuses Popular Restaurants of Illegally Fixing Tip Rates
July 31, 2013 – 11:19 am
In Diamond et al. v. Darden Restaurants, Inc. et al., plaintiff Ted Diamond filed a proposed class action suit against the owners of several popular restaurant chains, such as Red Lobster, Olive Garden, Applebee’s, and Ruby Tuesday, accusing the restaurants of fixing prices at locations in New York City’s Times Square for automatic gratuities and […]
U.S. Supreme Court Allows Attack on Loyalty Discounts to Move Forward
June 19, 2013 – 9:47 am
In Eaton Corp. v. ZF Meritor LLC et al., the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari, refusing to review a Third Circuit decision upholding the imposition of antitrust liability on a truck transmission manufacturer for encouraging its customers to deal with it exclusively by offering low prices. Most federal circuit courts that have considered whether loyalty […]
Court Dismisses Multi-user Monopolization Case Against Microsoft
April 23, 2013 – 12:32 pm
In MiniFrame Ltd. v Microsoft Corp, Southern District of New York judge Richard J. Sullivan dismissed the plaintiff’s case, concluding that Microsoft’s Windows licensing rules and entry into the multi-user market did not constitute anti-competitive conduct and predatory pricing. MiniFrame provides a service that enables multiple users to access a single PC. It argued that […]
Jury Awards $400 Million In Price Fixing Urethane Foam MDL
February 26, 2013 – 4:30 pm
In In re: Urethane Antitrust Litigation,Kansas federal jury awarded $400 million to a class of purchasers in multidistrict litigation against the Dow Chemical Co. and other chemical manufacturers, finding the companies conspired to fix the price of urethane foam, used in many types of cushions. The litigation, which was consolidated in 2008, accused chemical companies […]
DOJ Expands Its Investigation Into Auto Industry’s Price Fixing and Bid Rigging
February 26, 2013 – 2:23 pm
A criminal investigation into price-fixing and bid rigging in the auto parts industry between 2000 and 2010, conducted by the U.S. Department of Justice, Japan Fair Trade Commission, and antitrust officials in Europe, has expanded, according to DOJ’s deputy assistant attorney, Scott Hammond. The probe, which previously involved a number of products including automatic wire […]
Court Rejects Double Recovery Claim In LCD Antitrust MDL
January 28, 2013 – 11:42 am
In Rockwell Automation Inc v. AU Optronics Corporation et al., Northern District of California Judge Susan Illston rejected LG Display Co. Ltd.’s argument that Rockwell Automation Inc.’s state price-fixing claims would lead to duplicative recovery in the multidistrict litigation over liquid crystal display panels. LG brought counterclaims and affirmative defenses against Rockwell’s Wisconsin state law […]
Court Dismisses the Claims of the Last Two Plaintiffs In An Antitrust Suit Against Wholesale Grocery Suppliers
January 24, 2013 – 2:33 pm
In Wholesale Grocery Products Antitrust Litigation, Minnesota District Court Judge Ann D. Montgomery granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment, and dismissed the claims of the last two plaintiffs in a suit alleging wholesale grocery suppliers SuperValu Inc. and C&S Wholesale Grocers Inc. conspired to inflate prices by entering into a non-compete agreement. The consolidated antitrust […]