Apple Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. were accused in a lawsuit of striking an unlawful deal to drive up prices for iPhones and iPads by wiping out hundreds of third-party sellers who often offered steep discounts.
Consumer Steven Floyd says an “Unlawful Boycott Agreement” between Apple and Amazon forced him to pay $319.99 for an iPad when he should have been able to get a discount in a “normal competitive market,” according to the proposed class-action complaint filed in Seattle federal court.
The suit comes as Amazon is facing antitrust scrutiny from states and regulators over policies involving third-party merchants. California sued Amazon in September alleging that the company forces third-party merchants to agree to policies that lead to “artificially high prices” for consumers. Amazon denies wrongdoing in that case.
