US: Apple faces price-fixing suit from developers

According to a report from Bloomberg, Apple was sued by two software developers who claim it’s violating US antitrust law by suppressing competition in the market for iPhone applications.

Donald R. Cameron and Pure Sweat Basketball said Apple improperly forces them to sell through the company’s App Store, takes a 30% cut of sales and requires that all prices end with 99 cents on products that aren’t offered for free, reported Bloomberg.

“From the outset, Apple attained monopoly power in the US market for iOS app and in-app product distribution services by slamming the door shut on any and all potential competitors,” the developers said in their complaint filed Tuesday, June 4, in federal court in San Jose, California.

Cameron and Pure Sweat are seeking to represent a nationwide class of developers whose products are sold through Apple’s iOS App Store. They’re seeking an order barring Apple from anticompetitive practices and violations of California’s Unfair Competition Law, plus unspecified damages, which may be tripled under antitrust law.