The DOJ’s half-baked explanation of Apple’s role in the e-book case

[Commentary] The Justice Department is pouncing on statements by Apple like “aikido move” and “trounce Amazon” to prove its case that Apple was the hub of an illegal conspiracy to fix the price of e-books. While the statements sounds serious, the government’s overall explanation of Apple’s role in the conspiracy is far from convincing.

The “aikido” comments appear in a court filing that coincided with a long-expected announcement that the government is suing Apple and book publishers for antitrust violations. The filing instead relies on circumstantial evidence like frequent phone calls and lunches between executives, as well as the publishers’ common concern over Amazon’s $9.99 e-book pricing. While this might or not be evidence of a conspiracy among the publishers, the government’s explanation for why Apple participated is far-fetched at best.