E-book price fixing trial set for 2013: Apple, Macmillan and Penguin prepare for courtroom brawl

The Justice Department meant business when it accused Apple and five other publishers of price-rigging e-books, and are officially taking Cupertino and two publishers to court. In a hearing on Friday, Judge Denise Cote set a bench trial for June 3, 2012, putting Apple, Macmillan and Penguin Group on the defense. The government's allegations focus largely on agency pricing, which sees booksellers taking a 30 percent cut of each sale in lieu of buying the books at wholesale and setting their own prices. Apple and Macmillan have already denied the Justice Department's claims, of course -- but that wasn't on the stand, was it?

E-book price fixing trial set for 2013: Apple, Macmillan and Penguin prepare for courtroom brawl originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 22 Jun 2012 21:55:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.