How this $600 million lawsuit win will keep Apple reseller restrictions on Amazon in UK

A UK tribunal has ruled in favour of Apple and Amazon. The court has dismissed a mass lawsuit that accused the companies of colluding to remove resellers of new Apple products from Amazon's website in the UK. The lawsuit, brought by consumer law academic Christine Riefa on behalf of nearly 36 million British consumers, alleged that the agreement between Apple and Amazon limited competition and inflated prices for consumers.However, the tribunal concluded that the agreement did not breach competition law, clearing both companies of the charges.

According to a report by the news agency Reuters, Riefa's legal team claimed that Apple and Amazon struck a deal in 2018 to exclude the majority of resellers offering Apple and Beats-branded products from Amazon's UK marketplace, thereby limiting competition for those items.

Apple and Amazon argued that the case, valued at £494 million ($602 million) plus interest, lacked merit and urged the Competition Appeal Tribunal to dismiss it.
The tribunal determined that the case could not proceed because Riefa failed to demonstrate "sufficient independence or robustness" to represent the claimant class, particularly concerning third-party litigation funding.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal's decision to deny certification, an initial step in such litigation, is uncommon given the relatively low threshold for certification.
In a separate US lawsuit, Apple and Amazon sought dismissal but were denied in June 2023. The case highlighted that following Apple's 2018 agreement with Amazon, the number of Apple resellers on the platform plummeted by 98%, from nearly 600 to just 7.
Apple also has the right to screen Authorized Apple Resellers to ensure the maintenance of high service standards.