A group of U.S. consumers and small businesses has filed a lawsuit against Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, and Micron Technology, alleging collusion to inflate dynmaic random access memory (DRAM) prices.
Quartz, an online business publication, reported on Monday that 17 plaintiffs filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California on June 25. The suit demands an end to alleged production pressure tactics and seeks triple damages for overpayments resulting from the purported collusion.
According to the complaint, the price of commodity DRAM has skyrocketed by approximately 700% over four years. The plaintiffs contend that the three companies deliberately constrained supply to drive up prices.
As evidence of the supply restriction’s ripple effects, the lawsuit cites Apple’s recent price hikes on products such as iPads and MacBooks.
The legal action also references a 2005 case where Samsung and SK Hynix pleaded guilty to price-fixing charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice for activities between 1998 and 2002. This resulted in a total fine of 731 million USD and prison sentences for some executives.