Three of the largest makers of computer and video screens, Sharp Corp., LG Display Co. and Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltd., pleaded guilty to criminal price-fixing charges and will pay fines totaling $585 million.As a result of the price fixing, electronics manufacturers and, ultimately, consumers were forced to pay higher prices for televisions, cellphones and other products using liquid-crystal displays, the Justice Department said.
U.S. officials said products affected by the price fixing included Apple Inc. iPods and Razr phones from Motorola Inc. as well as laptops and computer monitors from Dell Inc.
The price fixing affected products like Motorola Razr phones, left, and Apple iPods from 2005 and 2006.
Assistant Attorney General Thomas O. Barnett, the department's chief antitrust enforcer, said LG Display, Sharp and Chunghwa participated in price-fixing conspiracies that were international in scope and "affected millions of American consumers who use computers, cellphones and numerous other household electronics every day."
Mr. Barnett said he did not yet have specifics on the amount of financial loss suffered by consumers. But he said the termination of the conspiracies should lead to lower prices.
World-wide sales for LCDs totaled $70 billion in 2006, according to the Justice Department.
South Korea's LG Display will pay a $400 million fine, the second-highest criminal fine ever imposed by the Justice Department's antitrust division, U.S. officials said. Sharp, of Japan, will pay a fine of $120 million; Chunghwa, of Taiwan, $65 million.
Sharp said in a statement that it "understands the gravity of this situation and will strengthen and thoroughly implement measures to prevent the recurrence of this kind of problem, and will earnestly work to regain the public's confidence."
An LG spokesperson did not return a call seeking comment. Chunghwa could not immediately be reached for comment.
Mr. Barnett said Sharp engaged in three separate conspiracies with unnamed co-conspirators to fix prices for LCD panels sold to Dell, Apple and Motorola. He said LG Display and Chunghwa conspired with each other to reach agreed-upon prices at which the two companies would sell LCD displays.
Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest LCD maker, wasn't cited in Wednesday's announcement. But it cooperated with U.S. investigators in the probe, people close to the case said.
In 2006, when the investigation became public, Samsung confirmed it received subpoenas. In a statement, the company said it has "has pledged its full and continuing cooperation" with the ongoing investigation.
Mr. Barnett declined to comment on whether Samsung cooperated with investigators or received legal immunity in the investigation.
Under federal law, the first firm to give antitrust enforcers evidence of a criminal conspiracy can receive amnesty from criminal charges.
Mr. Barnett said the Justice Department's LCD probe was ongoing. He commended the boards of Sharp, LG Display and Chunghwa for cooperating. Their fines "would have been significantly higher had they not done so," he said.
