Apple Survives Day One of DOJ Lawsuit Trial

The proceedings got off to a rocky start on Monday, with Apple’s attorneys questioning in their opening remarks whether or not this particular judge could give Apple a fair trial, practically accusing her of being biased against the company. This mild accusation came from a remark the Judge Denise Cote made that the evidence was stacked against Apple in this case. However, Cote gently reminded the attorneys that she is quite capable of doing her job, and that it was Apple who requested that she review the evidence before the trial began in an effort to speed things up. According to the Department of Justice, who is bringing this suit against Apple, there’s a reason Apple is the last player standing in the years-long court proceedings that brought in five of the then-Big Six publishers as well as Apple. The tone of yesterday’s court session made it appear as though the publishers, fearful of what Amazon’s growing market power could do to the price of books, were lured in by Apple’s plan to make sure its newly launched iPad stood a chance with consumers. Yesterday’s evidence brought in a plethora of emails and correspondence between various players in the entire issue, demonstrating an “out to get them” mentality lobbed at Amazon, and the willingness of the publishers to go along with it. One document filed in court actually showed Penguin CEO David Shanks admitting that Apple served as the go-between for the alleged scheming to take control of prices away from the book retailers, something that has been in practice for hundreds of years, and give that pricing power back to the publishers. One of the more interesting turns of events in this case is the testimony expected later this week from Barnes & Noble. While more than a few eyebrows went up that the producer of the Nook tablets–which struggle in the marketplace to keep up with the iPad–would offer its support of Apple in court. Some sources have even openly stated that this is nothing more than B&N’s siding with Amazon’s enemy. But those who remember some of the proceedings in this case last summer may remember that B&N filed an amicus brief in the suits, stating in court that all book retailers potentially stand to be hurt if the terms of book pricing contracts revert back to what they had been prior to 2010. B&N made a very impassioned and eye-opening point that Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and other major retailers won’t ultimately be damaged by handling this lawsuit badly, but that communities will lose very valuable smaller and independent bookstores if agency pricing is overturned Apple Survives Day One of DOJ Lawsuit Trial is a post from: E-Reader News

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