Spanish regulator fines Apple, Amazon US$217.8 million for anti-competitive practices

MOSCOW - The Spanish National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) said on Tuesday that it had fined Apple and Amazon 194 million euros (US$217.8 million) for imposing restrictions on competition in the online marketplace in Spain, reported Sputnik.

"CNMC has fined various companies of Amazon and Apple groups totalling 194,150,000 euros for agreeing to and implementing certain competition restrictions on the online market or Amazon ‘marketplace’ (www.amazon.es) that affect third-party resellers of Apple products and products that compete with Apple," the agency said in a statement, adding that the CNMC fined the accused Apple Group companies 143,640,000 euros and the accused Amazon Group companies 50,510,000 euros.

The statement added that on October 31, 2018, Amazon and Apple signed two contracts that updated Amazon's terms as an Apple Authorised Reseller.

"Both companies agreed that only a number of distributors designated by Apple itself could sell Apple-branded products through the Amazon website in Spain," the agency noted.

As a result, more than 90 per cent of the resellers who used the Amazon site in Spain to retail Apple products were excluded from the main online market in the country, the statement read. In addition, prices for Apple products in Spain increased.

Amazon and Apple have also restricted the ability of brands competing with Apple to acquire advertising space on the Amazon site in Spain, the statement said. - Bernama