On April 1 2024, Pogust Goodhead filed an antitrust class action lawsuit on behalf of individuals who purchased iPhones directly from Apple Inc.
The case alleges anticompetitive conduct that resulted in higher prices, lower quality, reduced innovation and reduced choice for consumers.
The lawsuit alleges that Apple Inc. has trapped consumers in its product ecosystem, locking them into iPhone usage and blocking competing products.
Last year Apple generated annual net revenues of $383 billion, exceeding any other company in the Fortune 500.
The complaint alleges that this was not achieved by making their products better, cheaper, and more secure but by creating artificial barriers to keep users from purchasing competing devices.
“We want functioning markets where companies compete on merit, innovation and price. Apple brands itself to consumers as hyper-modern and progressive, egalitarian even, putting the world at the fingertips of their customers. But in reality they are preventing competition in order to squeeze dollars out of their customers.”
Jeffrey Gittleman, Partner and Global Competition and Antitrust Law Practice Chair, Pogust Goodhead
Department of Justice case against Apple
This comes on the heels of a highly-anticipated antitrust lawsuit filed in March 2024 by the U.S. Department of Justice against Apple Inc., alleging that the tech giant monopolized smartphone markets through anti-competitive practices.
The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, accuses Apple of stifling competition, harming innovation, and bloating profits at the expense of consumers through a course of conduct that includes blocking and disrupting the development of services that would enable consumers to access applications without having to pay for expensive hardware or switch between competing smartphone platforms and deliberately lowering the quality, security and functionality of cross-platform messaging and smartwatches so that customers have to keep buying iPhones.
Senior Department of Justice officials commented on the filing of the government’s antitrust case against Apple.
“Consumers should not have to pay higher prices because companies violate the antitrust laws.” – Attorney General Merrick B. Garland
“No matter how powerful, no matter how prominent, no matter how popular — no company is above the law.” – Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco
The Justice Department aims to restore competition in the smartphone industry and ensure fair access to app distribution for developers. This legal action represents a significant step by the U.S. government to address monopolistic behaviour in the tech sector.
Pogust Goodhead’s competition and antitrust team has extensive experience representing victims of all types of anticompetitive conduct, from price fixing cartels to illegal monopolies.
If you have any questions or information related to the Apple antitrust case, please contact Jeffrey Gittleman. If you have any media enquiries, please contact cknecht@pogustgoodhead.com.
