LONDON, Sept 28 (Reuters) – Britain’s Competition Appeal Tribunal on Monday allowed part of a consumer lawsuit against Apple and Amazon to proceed over claims they restricted competition in the sale of Apple products on Amazon’s UK marketplace.
The lawsuit alleges Apple and Amazon agreed in 2018 to limit which sellers could offer Apple and Beats-branded products on Amazon’s UK website, reducing competition and inflating prices.
The three-judge tribunal allowed claims relating to Apple products bought through Amazon’s marketplace to proceed, but rejected a broader claim covering products bought directly from Apple and other retailers.
The part of the case allowed to proceed could be worth between £289 million ($383 million) and £306 million, including interest, according to the claimant.
Judge Kelyn Bacon said claims relating to Amazon marketplace purchases were “plausible, credible and grounded in the facts”, but rejected wider claims relating to other retailers because they rested on a “complex and speculative theory of harm”.
The tribunal had refused last year to allow a largely similar lawsuit brought by consumer law academic Christine Riefa to go ahead because of concerns about the proposed class representative and litigation funding arrangements.
The claim was later refiled by Justin Le Patourel, who replaced Riefa as the proposed representative of consumers.
In its ruling, the tribunal said there was a realistic basis for arguing that restrictions on resellers could have led to higher prices for consumers buying Apple products through Amazon.
However, it said there was not enough evidence at this stage to support claims that the alleged conduct also increased prices for Apple products sold through Apple’s own stores or by other retailers.
An Apple spokesperson said the tech giant “strongly” disagreed with the claims.
“The safety of our customers is our first priority and the risks associated with counterfeit products can be very serious,” the spokesperson said.
Apple said its aim in reaching the agreement with Amazon was to tackle counterfeit products on the marketplace and improve customers’ experience. The company said counterfeit products could pose safety risks and mislead consumers into believing they were buying genuine Apple devices.
Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Reporting by Sam TabahritiEditing by Ros Russell and Louise Heavens)
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