Apple is facing yet another anti-competition complaint today after the Attorney General for the State of Connecticut launched an investigation into the state of the ebook market.
Asked to defend itself along with Amazon over the deals the two biggest ebook sellers in the country have been striking with publishers to guarantee favorable pricing and exclusive titles, Attorney General Richard Blumenthal says that the way Apple has been running its new iBooks business prevents other marketplaces from offering lower prices on the same titles, taking a sledgehammer and hobbling block to the already-atrophied legs of its competitors.
Blumenthal says that Amazon and Apple have reached agreements with the largest book publishers, guaranteeing that they will receive the best prices for e-books over other competitors. As indication of anti-competitiveness, Blumenthal has pointed to a list of New York Times best sellers that are identically priced at Amazon, Apple, Barnes & Noble and Borders’ e-book stores, which he argues is a strong implication of price-fixing.
For right now, Blumenthal is just collecting data, and has invited Apple and Amazon to meet with his office to address his concerns. You can read the full PDF of his letter to Apple here.
