The National Court has temporarily paused fines issued by the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) against Apple and Amazon, dating from July 2023. The combined amount reaches 194.15 million euros and targets alleged anti competitive restrictions in Amazon’s marketplace in Spain, affecting third party sellers of Apple and competing products.
The National Court’s decision, which partly granted appeals from the two companies against the CNMC ruling, is reflected in two December 2023 documents published by the Judicial Documentation Center (Cendoj) and reported by La Información.
Article 6 of the Disputed Administrative Chamber of the National Court also temporarily suspended the 128.64 million euro fine on Apple Distribution International, and the 15 million euro fine on Apple, totaling 143.64 million euros. It suspended 50.51 million euros related to Amazon Services Europe, Amazon Europe Core and Amazon EU combined.
In both cases, the court required a precautionary suspension of fines with the companies providing guarantees for the specified amounts. The judiciary also paused the ban on all named companies from contracting with the public administration, a measure included in the CNMC decision.
Nevertheless, the National Court stressed that both Apple and Amazon must cease the conduct that led to the CNMC fines.
Amazon argues this could cause serious harm
In its appeal, Amazon argued that paying the full sanctions would amount to an immediate admission of liability. The company highlighted that the fines would equate to almost a quarter of its liquid assets as of December 31, 2022, a significant portion of its resources.
Amazon stated that these funds are used for current operating costs, supplier payments, salaries, and ongoing capital investments across Europe. Plans include opening new distribution centers to bring deliveries closer to customers and improve overall distribution efficiency.
The accounting status of the sanctioned entities would imply a damage figure of 720.4 million euros. As of December 31, 2022, ASE, AEC and AEU carried a total debt of about 3.3 billion euros to the Public Treasury, Social Security, and other creditors.
Amazon sources told Europa Press that the company intends to continue appealing because it disagrees with the CNMC decision.
Amazon also rejected CNMC’s suggestion that its model benefits from excluding sellers from the store. The company argues its business model relies on the success of many sellers, including numerous small and medium sized enterprises. The broader impact on Spanish customers included a wider product range and faster delivery that has grown in the last four years, alongside favorable deals.
Apple argued that the penalties represented a percentage of Apple branded electronics sales in Spain’s online retail market. Paying the penalties could jeopardize the appellants’ ability to invest in the affected market, including Amazon’s marketplace in Spain.
Second highest fine ever issued by CNMC
This penalty marks the second highest level imposed by CNMC in its history. It is surpassed only by a 203.6 million euro fine applied to six major construction firms in Spain for altering competition in infrastructure tenders that had prevailed for more than a quarter century.
CNMC had reported in July 2023 that both firms agreed to add several clauses to contracts governing Amazon’s terms as an Apple distributor that affected the sale of Apple products and other brands on the Amazon site in Spain.
Authorities noted that the two companies allegedly restricted the number of sellers for Apple products on Amazon Spain and limited advertising space for rival Apple products. They also restricted Amazon’s ability to direct marketing campaigns to Apple customers on the site in Spain, limiting exposure for competing brands.
CNMC subsequently provided detailed information to clarify these points.