“Authorities searched the French offices of Apple and some affiliated companies as part of an investigation into retailing practices, a spokesman for the French competition regulator said on Tuesday,” David Jolly reports for The New York Times.
Jolly reports, “The news of the investigation in France was first reported Monday by Les Échos, a financial newspaper. The article said the investigators were interested in Apple’s relations with its distributors. The article cited the case of eBizcuss, an Apple premium reseller that operated about 15 stores until it collapsed last year. The eBizcuss chief executive, François Prudent, accused Apple of abusing its market dominance and of unfair competition, contending that the company had opened Apple stores around the country while starving its other authorized retailers of popular products like the newest iPads and iPhones. Mr. Prudent filed a complaint with the regulator.”
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France probes app stores over ‘lock-in,’ confirms raid on Apple – July 1, 2013