Apple, Inc., has officially notified the U. S. Court of Appeals that it intends to appeal the judgment against it in the recent ebook price fixing case. Apple, along with five publishers, was accused of a conspiracy to fix the prices of electronic books by forcing Amazon to raise their charges to levels sought by Apple. Apple wished to join Amazon in selling electronic books online, but did not wish to join their rival in offering them for prices that left little if any room for profit. Amazon is focused on long-term market share, and is willing to forgo profits today for market share tomorrow. Apple wishes to have its cake and eat it too.
Apple and the publishers had numerous conversations, and on one day, the publishers all switched to an agency model of pricing. In an agency model, the publisher sets the retail price and all retailers must charge that amount. No one is allowed to discount, as Amazon had been doing. It forced Amazon to raise its prices.
While agency pricing may sound like price fixing in itself, it is not. Publishers can force all retailers to charge a minimum price for their books. What they can't do is get together and all agree to adopt the agency model together. That is what the U.S. Department of Justice believed had happened when they all raised prices together, and the D.O.J. believed that Apple was a major instigator of the claimed conspiracy.
Ultimately, all of the publishers chose not to fight city hall. They all reached settlements with the D.O.J. Apple did not. Apple contended that it had done no wrong, that it had not conspired with the publishers to set prices. They fought the case in court. They lost.
The District Court ruled that Apple had conspired to fix prices. No monetary judgment has yet been set, but the Court did order a monitor be placed in Apple's headquarters to make sure they do not engage in such behavior again. Apple still believes it owes no damages, deserves no monitors. So, on October 3, they officially filed a notice with the Appeals Court of their intent to appeal.
Apple has not stated a grounds for its appeal. It has a few months to put the details together. However, they made sure to leave every door open, writing in the notice that it appealed against the injunction and “any and all orders and rulings that were adverse to it.” Some hints of Apple's claims may be gleaned in objections Apple earlier filed with the trial court. Apple claimed that various witnesses they believed helpful to their case were not permitted to testify, certain testimony was disregarded, and incorrect inferences were drawn. This will all undoubtedly come out in greater detail when the appeal itself is filed.
An unscientific perusal of articles by legal experts suggests that most believe Apple has a difficult challenge. The consensus appears to be that the decision was well-reasoned and facts clearly established. Nevertheless, Apple will undoubtedly be bringing the best legal minds to the challenge, and no one can better afford an appeal than Apple. Apple earns almost a billion dollars a week and has for a long time been struggling to figure out what to with all of its money. No matter how much it invests in the appeal, it will be barely a drop in the bucket. Having more money than you know what to do with is one of those unusual challenges most of us will never experience.
Dominic Winter Auctioneers Printed Books, Maps & Wisdens, English Bibles 1500-1800 22nd July 2026
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 83 – Westall & Owen. Picturesque Tour of the River Thames, 1st edition, 1828. £2,000-3,000.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 88 – Blume. Rumphia, Botanicae de plantis Indiae Orientalis, 1835-1848. £2,000-3,000.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 101 – Michaux. Histoire des arbres forestiers de l'Amérique septentrionale, 1810-1812. £700-1,000.
Dominic Winter Auctioneers Printed Books, Maps & Wisdens, English Bibles 1500-1800 22nd July 2026
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 102 – Miller & Shaw. Cimelia Physica, 1796 [but c. 1816]. £3,000-5,000.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 104 – Parkinson. Theatrum Botanicum: The Theater of Plants, London: Thomas Cotes, 1640. £800-1,200.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 159 – Plancius. Orbis Terrarum..., double hemisphere map, 1594-99. £5,000-8,000.
Dominic Winter Auctioneers Printed Books, Maps & Wisdens, English Bibles 1500-1800 22nd July 2026
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 217 – Illuminated Medieval Manuscript. From a Breviary, 14th/15th c. £3,000-4,000.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 224 – The newe Testament … By Wylliam Tyndall…, 1549. £3,000-5,000.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 238 – Douay-Rheims Bible. 3 volumes, 1582/1609/1610. £7,000-10,000.
Dominic Winter Auctioneers Printed Books, Maps & Wisdens, English Bibles 1500-1800 22nd July 2026
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 336 – Ashendene Press. A Treatyse of Fysshynge with an Angle, 1903. £1,000-1,500.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 393 – Sassoon. Memoirs of an Infantry Officer, signed limited edition, 1931. £800-1,200.
Dominic Winter, July 22: Lot 402 – Dylan Thomas. Twenty-Five Poems, 1st edition in d.j., 1936. £400-600.
Case Auctions 2026 Summer Auction August 1st and 2nd
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: Timberlake, Henry: A DRAUGHT OF THE CHEROKEE COUNTRY on the West Side of the Twenty Four Mountains, Commonly Called "Over the Hills". $18,000 to $22,000.
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: Manuscript orderly book detailing day to day activities of multiple Virginia regiments in the Continental Army during the Revolutionary,1776-1777. $7,000 to $8,000.
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: Cormac McCarthy, The Orchard Keeper, Random House, New York, 1965. Signed 1st Edition. $3,800 to $4,200.
Case Auctions 2026 Summer Auction August 1st and 2nd
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: Battle of Kings Mountain Pamphlet by Isaac Shelby, April 1823, Signed. $1,800 to $2,200.
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: Large Tintype CSA Lt. Col. Thomas Coke Johnson, 19th GA, w/ Southern Cross, Book. $1,400 to $1,800.
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: Rare Civil War Ambrotype, 19th GA Infantry with Johnson Family of GA. $800 to $1,200.
Case Auctions 2026 Summer Auction August 1st and 2nd
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: A signed note written by Thomas Alva Edison to an unknown recipient, in which he shares his thoughts on Guglielmo Marconi, regarded as the inventor of the radio. $800 to $1,200.
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: Rare 1931 TN Grasslands Steeplechase Book, Gallatin. $800 to $1,000.
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: War of 1812 related Broadside, Petersburg Volunteers. $700 to $800.
Case Antiques, Aug. 1: 2 World War I Posters, “Our Colored Fighters” and “No Slacker”. $800 to $1,000.
