27 May 2010
Lawyers warn Apple iBookstore could cause price fixing issues
Rosemary Choueka, partner and Head of Competition and Public Procurement, Lawrence Graham LLP
As you may be aware, Apple's iPad launches internationally today and the iBookstore has caused concerns for publishers in the UK, with some holding off signing contracts with the service, fearing it could fall foul of EU and UK competition law. Although publishers have generally been quick to sign up to sell e-books through the iBookstore in the US where it has already been launched, there has been greater reticence in Europe, with many fearing price fixing issues could arise.
Head of EU, Competition and Regulation Rosemary Choueka at international business law firm Lawrence Graham LLP (LG) commented: "Apple seems to have a complex pricing structure in place, but it needs to be careful.
The Apple brand has a massive market appeal and is now seen as being bigger than Microsoft. Given the many recent battles that Microsoft has fought with the European Commission over alleged abuses of its dominant position, it is clear that the Commission is not going to let the big players get away with behaving unlawfully. Although Apple is only just entering the electronic book market in the EU, if the success of its other recent launches are anything to go by, it will not be long before Apple has the lion's share of the market. In light of this, Apple needs to take care to ensure that it is not imposing anti-competitive terms on publishers and retailers. This is precisely the sort of arrangement that could cause the Commission to sit up and take an interest".
"There may be ways to structure the arrangements so that they are not anti-competitive, but Apple needs to be vigilant in the way it tackles this so that it does not fall foul of the law," she added.