A federal jury in San Francisco found July 3 that Toshiba
knowingly participated in a conspiracy to fix the price of
liquid crystal displays sold in the United States,
contributing to $87 million worth of damages suffered by
manufacturers and consumers.
A jury in the United States District Court for the Northern
District of California (San Francisco) has issued a verdict
against Toshiba in the amount of US$87 million due to
alleged antitrust practices in the LCD business. However,
given credits for settlements by other defendants,
including Sharp, Samsung and LG already cover the damages
suffered, Toshiba expects that it will not have to pay any
damages.
This class action was filed in 2007 by direct purchasers of
LCD panels and related products in the United States.
Toshiba claims that there was no illegal activity on its
part in the LCD business in the United States, and Toshiba
continues to hold that view. The company believes that the
jury's verdict is in error as to the finding of wrongdoing
on Toshiba's part. The Japanese company plans to pursue all
available legal avenues to correct that finding.
In addition, Toshiba said it has no plans to revise
projections for fiscal 2012 business performance due to
this matter.
In December, the court approved a $388 million settlement
payment by defendants including Sharp, Samsung Electronics
, and LG Display involving claims by direct purchasers. It
earlier approved $17 million in settlements for direct
purchasers.
In January, the court gave preliminary approval to
settlements totaling more than $538 million in a separate
antitrust case involving indirect purchasers.