Class Action Suit Against Apple, AT&T To Move Forward
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Jul 12 2010, 7:07 AM
A federal judge has allowed a monopoly abuse lawsuit filed against Apple and AT&T to move forward as a class action suit, according to the Associated Press.
The class action suit consolidates several anti-trust complaints filed by purchasers of the iPhone in late 2007, a few months after Apple's first generation of iPhones went on sale.
The lawsuit takes issue with Apple's practice of "locking" its devices so they can only be used on AT&T's network, as well as with the company's absolute control over what applications iPhone users can and cannot install on their phones.
The lawsuit also alleges that Apple secretly made AT&T its exclusive partner in the United States for five years. iPhone customers agreed to two-year contracts with AT&T upon purchasing their phones, but are effectively locked into a five-year relationship.
Apple and AT&T's actions hurt competition and drove up prices, according to the suit.
The class action suit, which includes anyone who purchased an iPhone with a two-year AT&T contract since the device's initial launch, is seeking an injunction to prevent Apple from selling locked phones in the United States and from controlling what applications iPhone users can install on their phones.
[image via zdnet.com]
A federal judge has allowed a monopoly abuse lawsuit filed against Apple and AT&T to move forward as a class action suit, according to the Associated Press.
The class action suit consolidates several anti-trust complaints filed by purchasers of the iPhone in late 2007, a few months after Apple's first generation of iPhones went on sale.
The lawsuit takes issue with Apple's practice of "locking" its devices so they can only be used on AT&T's network, as well as with the company's absolute control over what applications iPhone users can and cannot install on their phones.
The lawsuit also alleges that Apple secretly made AT&T its exclusive partner in the United States for five years. iPhone customers agreed to two-year contracts with AT&T upon purchasing their phones, but are effectively locked into a five-year relationship.
Apple and AT&T's actions hurt competition and drove up prices, according to the suit.
The class action suit, which includes anyone who purchased an iPhone with a two-year AT&T contract since the device's initial launch, is seeking an injunction to prevent Apple from selling locked phones in the United States and from controlling what applications iPhone users can install on their phones.
[image via zdnet.com]
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