Amazon iPad Lawsuit: Buyers Since May 7, 2020 May Be Included

A lawsuit filed by two shoppers alleges that Amazon and Apple secretly arranged a deal in 2018 that forced nearly all independent Apple sellers off Amazon's marketplace, and that the fallout has been higher iPad prices for everyday buyers ever since.

At the heart of the complaint is what's called the "Global Tenets Agreement," dated October 31, 2018. The lawsuit claims this deal gave Amazon a steady supply of discounted Apple products in exchange for slashing the number of approved Apple resellers on its platform from at least 600 down to just seven, a drop the complaint alleges wiped out more than 98 percent of those sellers.

According to the plaintiffs, the resellers pushed out were exactly the ones offering the best deals, in some cases undercutting Apple's own online prices by more than 20 percent. Once they vanished, the lawsuit claims iPad prices on Amazon climbed and never came back down, allegedly costing buyers an extra $40 to $109 per iPad. It's worth noting these are unproven allegations, and neither Amazon nor Apple has filed a response yet.

The case is seeking class-action status on behalf of individuals and businesses nationwide who bought a new iPad through Amazon's "Buy Box", the main "Add to Cart" listing on a product page, starting May 7, 2020. Used iPads and other Apple products aren't covered. The lawsuit brings a single antitrust claim under Section 1 of the Sherman Act and seeks triple damages under the Clayton Act.