Apple Computer has been hit with a class-action lawsuit accusing the personal computer giant of ignoring warranties, misappropriating confidential reseller information, and packaging old items as new ones, according to a filing in California state court.
Filed by a group of Apple resellers and customers, the suit also accuses Apple of ensuring its own stores were stocked better and ahead of resellers’ shelves, and of undercutting reseller prices and refusing to extend warranties while products were undergoing repairs.
Ironically, Apple itself had recently sued three Internet journalists for leaking confidential company information. In early January, they sued ThinkSecret.com’s publisher, accusing the Mac enthusiast site of including Apple trade secrets on postings at that site—but Apple filings isolated specific articles, a tip that some of the information was accurate.
"We believe that ThinkSecret solicited information about unreleased Apple products from these individuals, who violated their confidentiality agreements with Apple by providing details that were later posted on the Internet," said a company statement at the time of the ThinkSecret filings.
The resellers’ class action litigation isn’t the first time resellers have tried taking Apple to court over the company’s practices, either—a reseller coalition led by MACadam and Elite Computers’ chiefs, Tom Santos and Thomas Armes, sued Apple for allegedly promoting company stores to an extent that drove resellers out of business, according to published reports.
