Apple deceived iPod owners by manipulating prices, say plaintiffs in class action anti-trust lawsuit

Plaintiffs, who have brought an anti-trust lawsuit against Apple, have accused the company of keeping iPod prices high by implementing unnecessary software updates, a report said.

Attorneys representing the two plaintiffs in the case argued that in order to hurt its competitors and ban their music from iTunes, Apple ended up hurting its consumers'' interests, reported CNET.

The crux of the case is a set of now-defunct policies adopted by the tech giant in the earliest days of the iPod to control where and how users of iTunes and owners of its music players could play purchased songs. The plaintiffs argued that the company stifled competition by persuading iPod users to purchase songs only on iTunes and by restricting other MP3 players from playing iTunes songs on their devices. This kept iPod prices artificially high, the plaintiffs said.

Apple's lead attorney has refuted these claims by saying that the insertion of a "stranger" in the middle could have posed a "danger" to the consumer experience and the quality of the product.

The plaintiffs, Melanie Wilson and Marianna Rosen, are seeking US $350 million through the lawsuit. Because of its class action status, the suit could award damages to almost eight million people who purchased an iPod between September 12, 2006, and March 31, 2009.