Apple의 전자책 판매모델에 대한 미국 독점규제법의 적용방식에 대한 연구

초록

The DOJ and 33 states and territories filed civil antitrust action, alleging that Apple and E-book publishers conspired to raise the E-book’s retail price. The Appeal court held that Apple was per se violation of the Section 1 of the Sherman act. This case involved both horizontal and vertical agreements and proceeded as a civil action. The court focused on the effects of the agreement and found that Apple played the role of organizer in a horizontal conspiracy among publishers. In US, the key issue is whether per se or rule of reason applies to the challenged conduct. The most interesting thing in this case is that that effective remedies were provided to the victims. This contrasts with the situation in Korea, where it is not easy for victims to receive compensation for damages. Consumers who paid more for E-book received approximately $566 million dollars to compensate through the class action or parens patriae action. Plus there is another legal system for consumer redress in US. FTC is authorized to bring action in court in the public interest, result in enabling consumers to receive compensation. Although these systems cannot be directly adopted into the Korean legal mechanism, We need to consider introducing these system by modifying them to fit the Korean legal system as part of private enforcement. Ultimately, we could enhance victim relief, increase the confidence in law enforcement, and strengthen deterrence against law violations.

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