In Apple e-books case, judge inclined to appoint antitrust monitor

Apple may escape some of the penalties sought by the government in the e-book price-fixing case.

But the judge appears ready to grant the Justice Department’s request to appoint a third-party monitor who would review Apple’s policies and deals to ensure they complied with antitrust law, according to CNET.

In a hearing in a New York federal court on Tuesday, Judge Denise Cote considered new filings from both Apple and the Justice Department that were made after the two sides were unable to reach agreement on penalties that should be imposed in the case.

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According to CNET, Cote singled out Apple for not showing any remorse or indicating that it learned any lessons since losing the case. Earlier this summer, Cote ruled that Apple had conspired with five publishers to raise the price of e-books.

Still, Cote said overall she wanted any injunction to “rest lightly” on Apple’s business. To that end, she apparently did not support imposing new requirements on Apple’s App Store that would allow third-party apps to post links to their own bookstores, CNET reported.

Cote told both Apple and the Justice Department to revise their proposed penalties and submit them on Wednesday.

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