Apple and Amazon Hit With Revived UK Competition Case

Britain’s Competition Appeal Tribunal allowed claims involving Apple products purchased on Amazon’s marketplace to proceed while declining to certify broader allegations involving purchases made directly from Apple or other retailers, according to 9to5Mac.

The portion of the case permitted to advance could be valued at between £289 million and £306 million, including interest, according to the 9to5Mac report.

The dispute centers on a 2018 agreement between Apple and Amazon that allegedly limited the number of independent merchants permitted to sell Apple and Beats products through Amazon. The proposed class action contends those restrictions reduced competition and contributed to higher prices for British consumers, according to 9to5Mac.

Judge Kelyn Bacon concluded that the allegations concerning purchases through Amazon’s marketplace had a sufficient factual basis to move forward, while the broader claims involving sales through other retailers relied on a more speculative theory of consumer harm, 9to5Mac reported, citing Reuters.

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Apple disputed the allegations. The company told Reuters that its arrangement with Amazon was designed to combat counterfeit products and said it strongly disagreed with the lawsuit, according to 9to5Mac. Amazon also rejected the case, saying it expects the remaining claim ultimately to be found without merit.

Related: Apple, Amazon Consumer Case Revived in UK Competition Tribunal

The latest proceeding follows an earlier attempt to bring a class action over the companies’ agreement. Consumer-law academic Christine Riefa previously sought to represent affected buyers, but the Competition Appeal Tribunal declined to certify that case in 2025, citing concerns about its litigation-financing arrangements and whether Riefa could act independently in the interests of class members, according to 9to5Mac.

Among the tribunal’s concerns was an arrangement with litigation funder Asertis that could have allowed the funder to receive money from an eventual damages award before consumers were compensated. The tribunal also questioned whether Riefa was sufficiently independent from the legal advisers conducting the case, 9to5Mac reported.

The claim was subsequently refiled with Justin Le Patourel as the proposed class representative. A spokesperson for Le Patourel welcomed the tribunal’s latest decision while expressing disappointment that the entire proposed claim was not certified, according to the report.

The UK litigation is part of wider scrutiny of the companies’ arrangements involving Apple resellers. Apple and Amazon have faced investigations or legal challenges concerning similar restrictions in jurisdictions including Italy, Spain, Germany and the United States, according to 9to5Mac.

The tribunal’s ruling allows the narrower British claim to continue but does not determine whether Apple or Amazon violated competition law or whether consumers are ultimately entitled to damages.

Source: 9to5Mac