Apple loses appeal of $450M antitrust case

Apple said it is focused on the “next steps” after a federal appeals court let a judgement against the company stand in an antitrust suit related to its iBooks product.

The case concerns allegations that the company conspired with publishers to raise the price of ebooks in an attempt to undercut Amazon.

{mosads}In its ruling on Tuesday, a federal court sided with the government and against Apple, upholding a $450 million ruling against the company.

“We conclude that the district court correctly decided that Apple orchestrated a conspiracy among the publishers to raise ebook prices,” two of the panel’s three judges wrote in an opinion.

Apple denied the allegations in the case on Tuesday and said it was focused on figuring out what steps it would take next.

“Apple did not conspire to fix ebook pricing and this ruling does nothing to change the facts,” said an Apple representative in a statement.

“We are disappointed the Court does not recognize the innovation and choice the iBooks Store brought for consumers. While we want to put this behind us, the case is about principles and values. We know we did nothing wrong back in 2010 and are assessing next steps.”

Many, but not all, of the publishers named in the government’s initial suit settled. Apple, however, appealed the ruling.