Bosch to Alter Pricing Policies for Blaupunkt

In a settlement that the district attorney’s office says should lower the prices of expensive German-made Blaupunkt car stereos, the U.S. importer-distributor agreed Thursday to alter pricing policies that allegedly violate California antitrust laws.

Without admitting any liability or wrongdoing, Robert Bosch Corp. also agreed to pay $150,000 in civil penalties and court costs.

“This is the second-largest settlement in the history of the district attorney’s antitrust section,” said Deputy Dist. Atty. Thomas Papageorge, head of the consumer protection division.

Distribution Arrangement

A civil lawsuit filed Thursday charged Bosch with price fixing, saying the company forced wholesalers and retailers to abide by a vertical distribution arrangement that established retail prices and not to offer the Blaupunkt brand products at a discount.

The company also allegedly threatened to cut off the supply of the popular car stereo products to discounting retailers and employed a variety of coercive techniques to fix the resale prices.

Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael J. Delaney, who handled the case, said Bosch denied engaging in any unlawful practice.

“We continue to maintain, as we have done throughout the entire investigation, that allegations of price fixing in connection with Blaupunkt auto stereo products are completely baseless,” said William Thompson, general counsel of Robert Bosch Corp. “The car stereo business is extremely competitive and our wholesalers and retailers had complete freedom in pricing Blaupunkt products.”

Under terms of the stipulated judgment signed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the firm consented to a permanent injunction prohibiting it from engaging in retail price maintenance and from using any methods of coercion against retailers to ensure compliance with the distributor’s pricing policies.