Spain fines Apple and Amazon $218 million for elbowing out small retailers
Amazon and Apple have been fined a total of $218 million after Spanish regulators say they colluded to box out competitors by favoring sales of Apple products directly from the online retail giant MADRID -- Amazon and Apple were fined a total of 194 million euros ($218 million) Tuesday for colluding to box out competitors by favoring sales of Apple products directly from the online retail giant, Spain’s antitrust watchdog said. Amazon and Apple reached agreements in 2018 that limited the free competition of third-party sellers who hawk Apple goods through Amazon’s platform for smaller retailers, according to Spain’s National Markets and Competition Commission, which oversees Spanish markets for antitrust violations. "The investigated behaviors could be restricting com Pet ition in the sectors of the Internet sale of electronic products, and the provision of marketing services to third-party retail ers through online platforms (Marketplace) in Spain,” the regulator said. The tech g...