There's a difference between being competitive and outright cheating. In the world of business, one would expect the latter to be less prevalent than it is, but at the very least, many businesses end up paying for their bad behavior...and it seems Apple may be the latest to learn this lesson.
Back in November, a nearly decade-old case against Apple was approved for jury trial. The case against the electronics giant stated that, from 2007 through 2009, Apple allegedly used a piece of software named FairPlay to selectively delete competitor's music from iPods without informing users. Originally, FairPlay was to be used for simple security, but it seems that the program did far more than that.
Now that the case is in full swing, Apple should definitely be worried. According to a report from The Wall Street Journal, the company is facing a $350 million payout if found guilty, and because the case deals with anti-trust laws, that could be doubled. If found guilty, Apple could end up paying over a billion dollars in damages for a security issue from almost a decade ago.
So, why install FairPlay in the first place? According to Apple security director Augustin Farrugia, it was to deal with a burgeoning hacker problem. He testified that Apple was "paranoid" about prolific hackers from the time, and that "The system was totally hacked." He also touched on the fact that Apple wasn't telling its users about the program, saying "We don't need to give users too much information. We don't want to confuse users."
That being said, FairPlay also prevented users from buying music from other services and made it difficult to switch to a new device. Downloads from Real or Amazon would be wiped from the device following a restore, and Apple never explained what was happening. The plaintiffs are arguing that the company violated crucial anti-trust laws in order to lock down the growing music download service, as well as cement dominance for the iPod.
Phil Spencer, the head of Apple's marketing, is expected to testify later on in the week. Footage of a disposition given by late Apple CEO Steve Jobs in 2011 is also expected to be shown.
There is a chance that such evidence will completely shut down the case, but from what it seems, Apple may be guilty of trying to monopolize the market...and it could end up costing them a massive chunk of change.
