Looks like those crazy guys in the record industry are the subject of a class action suit for price fixing! What a surprise! Go to the Compact Disc Minimum Advertised Price Antitrust Litigation Settlement web site and sign up. It’s unlikely you’ll see any dollars from this, but it’ll serve as a punitive measure against the record industry.
According to the website …
What is the Litigation About?
Plaintiffs allege that the Defendants conspired to illegally raise the prices of prerecorded Music Products by implementing Minimum Advertised Price policies, in violation of State and Federal laws. All Defendants deny all claims of wrongdoing asserted by the Plaintiffs.
Who are the Defendants?
The Distributor Defendants are: Capitol Records, Inc. d/b/a EMI Music Distribution, Virgin Records America, Inc., and Priority Records LLC; Time Warner, Inc., Warner-Elektra-Atlantic Corp., WEA, Inc., Warner Music Group, Inc., Warner Bros. Records, Inc., Atlantic Recording Corporation, Elektra Entertainment Group, Inc., and Rhino Entertainment Company; Universal Music & Video Distribution Corporation, Universal Music Group, Inc., and UMG Recordings, Inc.; Bertelsmann Music Group, Inc. and BMG Music; and Sony Music Entertainment Inc. The Retailer Defendants are: MTS, Inc. d/b/a Tower Records, Musicland Stores Corp., and Trans World Entertainment Corp.
It’s really no surprise. Maybe that’s why we’re all downloading MP3s today instead of buying CDs.