Apple, Amazon face revived UK consumer lawsuit over product sales

The Competition Appeal Tribunal in Britain has allowed part of a lawsuit against Apple and Amazon to continue. The claimants allege that the tech giants conspired in 2018 to restrict sellers from offering Apple and Beats-branded products on Amazon's UK website. This alleged agreement allegedly limited competition and led to increased prices for consumers purchasing Apple products through Amazon.

However, the tribunal rejected a broader claim that encompassed products bought directly from Apple and other retailers. The claim could potentially be worth between £289 million and £306 million, including interest, according to the plaintiffs. Judge Kelyn Bacon deemed the claims related to Amazon marketplace purchases as plausible and credible, but dismissed claims involving other retailers due to their complex and speculative nature.

Last year, the tribunal had rejected a similar lawsuit brought by consumer law academic Christine Riefa, primarily due to concerns regarding the proposed class representative and litigation funding arrangements. However, the lawsuit was later refiled by Justin Le Patourel, who subsequently became the proposed representative of consumers.

In its ruling, the tribunal suggested that there is a plausible basis to argue that restrictions on resellers could have resulted in higher prices for consumers purchasing Apple products via Amazon. Nonetheless, they concluded that there isn't sufficient evidence at present to support claims that the alleged conduct also inflated prices for Apple products sold through Apple's own stores or by other retailers.