A case filed back in 2005 asserts that Apple’s proprietary software for the iPod allowed the company to shut out rival digital music download services forcing users to buy higher-priced iPods over competing music players and locking users into the iTunes ecosystem. The antitrust case, which will go back to court this month, could end up costing Apple roughly $350 million, according to The New York Times. The iPod’s old operating system is no longer used by Apple, of course and at this point, a $350 million fine will hardly make a dent in Apple’s bottom line.
The voice of the visionary behind much of the success of Apple, the lateSteve Jobs, will be heard once again thanks to a videotaped deposition set to be entered into evidence in a decade-old class action lawsuit.
A case filed back in 2005 asserts that Apple’s proprietary software for the iPod allowed the company to shut out rival digital music download services — forcing users to buy higher-priced iPods over competing music players and locking users into the iTunes ecosystem.
The antitrust case, which will go back to court this month, could end up costing Apple roughly $350 million, according to The New York Times.
The iPod’s old operating system is no longer used by Apple, of course — and at this point, a $350 million fine will hardly make a dent in Apple’s bottom line. So the real intrigue here is finding out what Jobs says in the previously unseen video.
Known for playing hardball in behind-the-scenes business dealings — in stark contrast to his infectiously optimistic onstage speeches — Jobs is revered as one of the greatest business minds of the past century. The video is one of the last of the late founder to be revealed.
But if the legal team behind the lawsuit is to be believed, the video’s content won’t improve Jobs’ reputation.
We will present evidence that Apple took action to block its competitors and in the process harmed competition and harmed consumers,” Bonny Sweeney, one of the attorneys from Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, the firm handling the lawsuit, told the Times.
Bonny Sweeney, one of the attorneys fromRobbins Geller Rudman & Dowd, the firm handling the lawsuit, told the Times.
It’s unclear whether the video will ever make to the public. In the past, Apple has made great efforts to keep such depositions under wraps.
“We have no plans to release the tape to the public,” Sweeney told Mashable, “but it will likely be played in open court.”
In addition to the deposition video, new emails entered into evidence will also be revealed. If the recent history of Apple court cases is any guide, those may also provide a good deal of insight into Jobs’ thinking when he was still at the head of the company.
If the plaintiffs win, the monetary damages would cover the period from September 12, 2006 to March 31, 2009. The court proceedings are set to begin on Tuesday in Oakland.
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Source: Mashable.com