Spain fines Apple and Amazon over colluding to restrict online sales competition

Contracts the companies signed at the end of October 2018 granting Amazon the status of authorised Apple dealer included anti-competitive clauses, watchdog said

Apple was fined €143.6m and Amazon €50.5m. The two companies have two months to appeal the decision. 

Spain's competition watchdog said it had imposed fines worth a total €194.1m on Amazon and Apple for colluding to limit the online sale of devices from Apple and competitors in Spain.

The two contracts the companies signed at the end of October 2018 granting Amazon the status of authorised Apple dealer included anti-competitive clauses that affected the online market for electronic devices in Spain, CNMC, as the watchdog is known, said in a statement.

"The two companies restricted without justification the number of sellers of Apple products on the Amazon website in Spain," it said.

More than 90% of the existing retailers who were using Amazon's market place to sell Apple devices were blocked as a result, CNMC added.

Amazon also reduced the capacity of retailers in the European Union based outside Spain to access Spanish customers, the regulator said.

It also restricted the advertising Apple's competitors were allowed to place on its website when users searched for Apple products, CNMC said.

Following the deal between the two tech giants, the prices of Apple devices sold online rose in Spain, it added. Apple was fined €143.6m and Amazon €50.5m. The two companies have two months to appeal the decision. 

• Reuters