The European Commission announced on 26 November 2009 that it has sent formal antitrust charges to cathode ray tube manufacturers, used in televisions and computers, due to suspicion that they operate…
The European Commission announced on 26 November 2009 that it has sent formal antitrust charges to cathode ray tube manufacturers, used in televisions and computers, due to suspicion that they operated a cartel. Royal Philips Electronics NV, a Dutch electronics company, confirmed that it had received the commission“s charges known as a statement of objections, and was preparing a response. The commission, which would not name the companies involved, said it had sent the charges to a “number of companies” with regards to their possible involvement in “two separate cartels”. According to the commission, one case involves colour display tubes used in computer monitors while the other concerns colour picture tubes used in colour television sets. The commission started its cartel investigation into TV screen makers in 2007, in collaboration with Asian antitrust authorities, because of suspicions suspicious that manufacturers were fixing prices of the tubes. During the probe, several offices were raided to look for discriminating evidence, also including those of Philips and the cathode ray tube unit of Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. In May 2008, a related investigation carried out by Hungary“s competition authority GVH launched a cartel probe into cathode ray tube manufacturers on the European market, because of price fixing suspicion between 1995 and 2007. Companies under investigation in Hungary include Samsung C&T Corp., Philips, Chunghwa Pictures Tubes Ltd. and Daewoo International Corp. USD 37.4 million in fines were levied by Japanese antitrust regulators in October 2009against Panasonic Corp. of Japan, a branch of South Korea“s Samsung group and LG Philips Displays Korea Co. for fixing the prices of cathode ray tubes. The Japanese authorities said that five companies had been involved in the cartel. The commission can fine companies up to 10% of their annual global turnover for involvement in a cartel, but fines are usually much lower than that The highest that a single company has ever had to pay in European cartel fines was EUR 896 million (USD 1.36 billion), which was levied from Saint-Gobain in a car-glass cartel.