MILAN (REUTERS) – Italy’s antitrust authority has fined United States tech giants Amazon and Apple a total of more than €200 million (S$308 million) for alleged anti-competitive cooperation in the sale of Apple and Beats products.
Contractual provisions of a 2018 agreement between the companies meant only selected resellers were allowed to sell Apple and Beats products on Amazon.it, the competition watchdog said, adding that this was in violation of European Union rules.
The authority imposed a fine of €68.7 million on Amazon and €134.5 million on Apple, ordering the companies to end the restrictions to give retailers of genuine Apple and Beats products access to Amazon.it in a non-discriminatory manner.
Apple denied any wrongdoing and said it plans to appeal against the fine.
“To ensure our customers purchase genuine products, we work closely with our reseller partners and have dedicated teams of experts around the world who work with law enforcement, customs and merchants to ensure only genuine Apple products are being sold,” it said.
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