Sotheby’s Alters Fees to Match Christie’s

Sotheby’s has overhauled its auction commissions, matching rival Christie’s new rates as the two New York auction houses face a federal antitrust investigation. Sotheby’s lowered fees on Internet sales and raised some of the commissions it charges buyers at live auctions. The changes make Sotheby’s more expensive than its rival for purchases under $15,000 and Christie’s more expensive for purchases that cost $15,000 to $80,000. “We did this in light of the competitive environment that we’re in,” said William Ruprecht, Sotheby’s new president and chief executive. Sotheby’s chairman and president stepped down last week amid pressure from the Justice Department, clients and shareholders over alleged antitrust violations. The Justice Department began an investigation in 1997 into auction houses, including Sotheby’s and Christie’s, focusing on alleged price-fixing in commissions. Under Sotheby’s new arrangement, sellers will be charged a fee based on the value of goods they have bought and sold through the auction house in a given calendar year. The new structure reduces fees once sellers have bought or sold more than $100,000 in goods. The old structure gave them credit only for goods they sold.