The Federal Antimonopoly service (FAS) Russia has fined four companies that did not provide information about the coordination of Apple iPhone price.
As have informed in a press-service FAS, four reseller of Apple products in Russia – OOO “Kronar”, “Haskell”, “Grimbor”, OOO “Maksimum” – did not provide information about coordination of prices on the iPhone. In December last year, the office filed against them administrative proceedings for failure to provide information about the cost of Apple’s smartphone. These companies “has not answered the queries of the Ministry”, said the FAS.
Today, February 1, passed the consideration of these cases and issued a decision to fine “Kronar” for 150,000 rubles, “Haskell” for 50 000 RUB, “Grimbor” 100 000 RUB., Maximum 150 000.
In February 2016 antimonopolschiki suspect retailers of price fixing in the sale of iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, which at that time was the last models of the popular smartphone of the American Corporation.
In the FAS on the citizen decided to request information from the 16 retailers. The request for pricing mechanisms in the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus were also sent to the official online Apple store. Check the FAS revealed that from the beginning of official sales of smartphones in Russia most Resellers have set the same prices of smartphones and hold them for a certain time. A similar situation was revealed with the previous iPhone models.
The office suggested that such overlap may result from the coordination of pricing an American Corporation, so the “recommended” price of the iPhone was made by the Russian Resellers as required.
In August 2016, the FAS filed a case against Apple structures (OOO “eppl Rus”, Apple Holding B. V., Apple Sales Ireland Apple Operations International and Apple Inc.) on the basis of the law “On protection of competition” (part 5, article 11). In turn, the American Corporation declared that dictate to retailers the price of the iPhone. Retailers also noted that set prices themselves on the basis of the existing market.
