rAVe: LCD Price-Fixing Suit Settled

December 12, 2011 by Dave Haynes

After the $585-million government fine for price-fixing, Sharp, Samsung, Chimei Innolux, LG and four other LCD manufacturers now must pay $388 million to settle the class-action suit from end users.

The companies won’t admit to the crime, but they agreed on the settlement in a price fixing case from a 2007 class action lawsuit.

That suit specifically cites LCD panels sold between 1999 and 2006 — the companies were alleged to have driven the price up. For that, the group will pay a total of $388 to settle the claims, with Sharp paying out the largest single amount of $105 million, Samsung with $82.7 million, followed by Chimei Innolux with $78 million and LG with $70 million.

The government gets its big dollar lawsuit… the end-users get to cash-in on a class action… but what do the integrators and installers get? Nothing! And that presumably means the law sees integrators as working neither on the side of the defendants, nor working for the victims.

Here are the details: http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-57338749-17/lcd-makers-fined-$388-million-for-alleged-price-fixing/