Reports of LCD price fixing between 1996 and 2006 were first covered by us in late 2006 (Display Monitor Vol 13 No 50), and while most legislation has been finalised, some is still ongoing.
A lawsuit has been raised in Illinois by the state’s attorney general, against Epson; LG Display; Hitachi; Innolux; Sharp; CPT; AUO; Toshiba; and Samsung. They are accused of conspiring to fix, maintain, raise or stabilise prices of TFT-LCD flat panels between 1998 and 2006. The attorney general is asking for damages to be paid to residents of Illinois who have been affected by the matter.
Settlements have been reached with Epson, LGD, Hitachi, Innolux, Sharp and CPT. The lawsuit continues against the other defendants. The six open claims have a total value of more than $104.6 million.
