OAKLAND, CA (CelebrityAccess) — After deliberating for several hours, a federal jury found in favor of Apple in a billion-dollar class-action lawsuit brought over alleged anti-competitive behavior in relation to the iPod music player and iTunes music store.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued that Apple's restrictive software environment and price structure amounted to anticompetitive behavior, designed to push competitors out of the portable music market.
Apple countered, arguing that the software was necessary to protect intellectual property and were part of a larger set of features that made Apple's offerings more attractive to consumers.
Attorneys for the plaintiffs said they plan to appeal the decision.
"We created iPod and iTunes to give our customers the world's best way to listen to music. Every time we've updated those products — and every Apple product over the years — we've done it to make the user experience even better," Apple said in a statement following the verdict. – Staff Writers
