Apple, Inc may be playing a little dirty with their sales tactics in Europe. Or at least that's what the European Commission is trying to find out as of May 27, according to Reuters .
Mobile network operators lodged complaints that Apple is making it nearly impossible for rivals to get a better sales deal. So companies like Samsung and Nokia, etc., are being edged out.
The European Commission sent out surveys to those mobile operators last week to begin their investigation.
So what exactly could Apple do to attempt to force technology giants like Samsung and Nokia out of the competition? According to BGR , the European Commission is looking into whether Apple has made deals where preferential marketing was applied to iPhones, if a minimum number of iPhones has to be purchased and if Apple is slighting some carriers by not allowing the iPhone to run on that carrier's 4G/LTE, thus driving consumers away.
But ComputerWorld brings up a very good point. At this stage, the investigation is only preliminary and the only way it can move on is if Apple holds the majority of the European smartphone market. As of April 2012, they didn’t. In fact they only held about 25 percent.
So even if they are on their way to attempting to tip the scales, since they aren’t top dog just yet, antitrust lawsuits will continue to fall the way they have in the past-- away , leaving Apple untouched.
via Examiner National Edition Gadgets & Tech Channel Articles http://www.examiner.com/article/european-commission-investigates-apple-inc-s-iphone-sales-tactics?cid=roadrunner