EBook: Brussels inquiry

The European Commission has opened an investigation to determine whether the e-book publishers subsidiaries of large groups such as Lagardère, Pearson and News Corp. have entered into illegal agreements with Apple for hindering competition. The procedure initiated by the European Commission concerning the French Hachette Livre (a subsidiary of Lagardère), the Penguin UK (owned by Pearson), the American Harper Collins (News Corp.). And Simon & Schuster (CBS) and the German Georg von Holzbrinck, which owns among other publishing house Macmillan.

In March, the European Commission had organized raids at several publishers, suspected anticompetitive practices. The French houses Albin Michel, Flammarion, Gallimard and Hachette have been inspected.

"The competition services conducted inspections in publishing houses in several countries of the European Union because of suspected anti-competitive practices on the price of digital books," had then said spokesman Joaquin Almunia, European Commissioner for Competition.

In January, the UK competition authority, the OFT (Office of Fair Trading), opened an investigation into the digital book market after receiving complaints against publishers and retailers about a possible deal on the price sale.

Brussels is showing more and more severe with the cartels. In 2010, the European authorities have inflicted milliarsd for 3 euros in fines in total, a figure close to the record of 2007. Main reason: the rise of financial penalties, more than the number of cases.