Boston ice dancer selected as new plaintiff in iPod class action lawsuit
A 65-year-old amateur ice dancer is the new plaintiff in the class action lawsuit filed against Apple, reports the Wall Street Journal. Barbara Bennet was flown into Oakland California and appeared in U.S. District Court on Tuesday. Following interviews with attorneys for both sides, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers said "We're on the right track."
The class action suit accuses Apple of anticompetitive practices that blocked other music players from connecting with iTunes and prohibited rival music services from integrating with Apple's popular iPod players. These actions allegedly drove up the prices of the iPod players from 2006 to 2009. Plaintiffs are requesting up to $350 million in damages, which could be tripled in accordance with antitrust regulations.
Court room proceedings in the suit started this week in the U.S. District Court of Northern California. The first week of the trial saw the departure of the two plaintiffs named in the suit for not owning an iPod covered by the case. With a replacement plaintiff in place, the trial will continue with a verdict possible as early as next week. This decision may not be the end of the lawsuit, though, as the changeover in plaintiffs provides Apple with an appealable issue in the case.
