THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) β The Dutch consumer watchdog has fined Samsung more than 39 million euros ($45 million) for exerting βundue influenceβ on the price of television sets sold by online retailers. The company vowed to appeal the ruling.
The Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets announced the fine Wednesday for the Benelux arm of the electronics giant.
βUnder the pretense of βprice recommendations,β Samsung made sure that retailers increased their prices to the market price that Samsung desired,β ACM board chairman Martijn Snoep said in a statement.
βSamsungβs practices disrupted competition at the retail level, and resulted in higher prices for consumers,β he added.
The practice was intended to influence prices of new models of television sets that usually drop quickly after they are introduced to the market.
βThrough this price coordination, Samsung protected its own margins as well as the retailersβ margins at the expense of consumers,β the ACM said.
The watchdog said it seized evidence of WhatsApp chats and emails during dawn raids.
Samsung said in a written reaction that it would appeal.
βWe are disappointed with the ACMβs decision, as we believe that Samsung Electronics Benelux ... did not violate competition laws in the Dutch TV market as alleged by the ACM,β the company said.