US judge finds monopoly suit against Amazon should proceed

In the US, a magistrate judge has recommended a class action lawsuit accusing the Big Five publishers of colluding with Amazon to fix ebook prices be dismissed, but found the case against the retailer, alleging monopolisation, should proceed, reports Publishers Weekly.

In a report, the judge found sufficient facts at the pleading stage to ‘plausibly allege that Amazon’s conduct has allowed it to charge supracompetitive commission fees, leading to reduced competition in the ebook platforms-transaction market and higher ebook prices for consumers.’

An amended class action lawsuit was re-filed in federal court in November last year, after a federal judge dismissed the original case due to a lack of evidence. The amended complaint alleged Amazon is a monopoly that has used its market dominance to ‘coerce’ publishers into ‘entering into contractual provisions that foreclose competition on price or product availability’.

The judge’s report and recommendation that the monopolisation claim may now proceed next goes to the district court for consideration.

Category: International news