Inside the DOJ’s Price-Fixing Case ⇥

Great analysis from Nilay Patel, the lawyer with the spiky wristband, who breaks down the Department of Justice’s ebook price collusion lawsuit:

Although Apple is listed as the first defendant, the bulk of the case is really about the publishers involved: Hachette, HarperCollins, Macmillan, Penguin, and Simon & Schuster. According to the government, these publishers greatly feared Amazon’s $9.99 Kindle book prices, which they called “wretched,” and worked for years on a scheme to raise prices and limit competition. They also feared that consumers would get used to paying $9.99 for bestsellers and ultimately decrease publishing profits.

Interestingly, Hachette, HarperCollins, and Simon & Schuster have already settled, but the remaining defendants are set to duke it out in court.