Amazon and major publishers win dismissal of antitrust lawsuits

On Thursday, a federal judge dismissed two antitrust lawsuits against Amazon.com Inc. and five major publishers accusing them of plotting to fix the price of e-books and traditional books in the US, causing consumers and bookstores to pay more.

The magistrate's recommendations on ending the cases against an e-commerce company and the publishers were accepted by the US District Judge in Manhattan.

According to the plaintiffs, Amazon controls 50% of retail sales of printed books and 90% of retail sales of e-books. According to the plaintiffs, publishers control 80% of both types of books.

In August, US Judge Valerie Figueredo recommended that both lawsuits be dismissed, citing the lack of any evidence of plotting.

U.S. District Judge Gregory Woods accepted Figueredo's reasoning. The case was closed, with the plaintiff retaining the right to sue on the same grounds. Therefore, in the future, the plaintiffs may try to amend their complaints.