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Six TV makers charged with creating CRT cartel

30 November 2009 10:42 by Andre "DVDBack23" Yoskowitz | 8 comments

The European Commission (EC) has accused six TV and monitor companies of running a cartel in the cathode-ray tube (CRT) market, charging the companies after a two-year long investigation.

The companies in question are Philips, LG Electronics, Chunghwa Picture Tubes, Matsushita, Samsung and Toshiba.

The complaint is that the manufacturers colluded in an effort to keep CRT screen prices artificially high in the midst of falling demand. CRT TVs and monitors have almost completely left the market, at least in western Europe, and the Japanese and North American markets, replaced by thinner LCD sets.

However, the CRT sets are "still widely used in Southern and Eastern Europe, especially for TVs," as well as "still made for a couple of emerging markets," says EC spokesperson Jonathan Todd, via CW.

If found guilty, the companies could face giant fines in Europe (up to 10 percent of global annual revenue) and those involved could face criminal trials in the United States alongside fines.

"Action is necessary in order to punish the companies involved for past cartel abuse and to dissuade future cartel activity," Todd added.

Permalink to this article | Topic: HDTV

Nokia sues LCD, CRT display makers over price-fixing (1 December 2009)

LCD makers sued over price-fixing (21 October 2009)

Sony, Fuji and Maxell fined for price fixing by EU (23 November 2007)

Matsushita subsidiary in price-fixing investigation (11 November 2007)

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slickwill (Junior Member) 30 November 2009 11:27
Well what else would one expect the companies to do in a monetary driven world. There must have been tons of CRT inventory that wasn't getting sold b/c people were buying more LCD type displays/tv's, so they had to do something about the unsold merchandise. [ + quote]
DXR88 (Senior Member) 30 November 2009 11:58
Raising the price on CRTs to drive LCD sales. is this not normal business tactics, if its not then there are about 50 more that need to be on that list [ + quote]
KillerBug (AfterDawn Addict) 1 December 2009 0:17
They should be charged with crimes just for selling those energy waisting, lead-filled boxes. If the goal of the higher prices is to kill off this obsilite crap, then more power to them. [ + quote]
DXR88 (Senior Member) 1 December 2009 0:25
*Originally posted by KillerBug:* They should be charged with crimes just for selling those energy waisting, lead-filled boxes. If the goal of the higher prices is to kill off this obsilite crap, then more power to them. How dare you i happen to like my toasty nay Crispy CRT Monitor Blacker Blacks Brighter colors and better refresh rates.. oh wait that's right LCD is like an expensive colored Etch A Sketch, don't shake to hard you'll wash out all that color. [ + quote]
ZippyDSM (AfterDawn Addict) 1 December 2009 0:43
*Quote:* *Originally posted by KillerBug:* They should be charged with crimes just for selling those energy waisting, lead-filled boxes. If the goal of the higher prices is to kill off this obsilite crap, then more power to them. How dare you i happen to like my toasty nay Crispy CRT Monitor Blacker Blacks Brighter colors and better refresh rates.. oh wait that's right LCD is like an expensive colored Etch A Sketch, don't shake to hard you'll wash out all that color. I dunno for twice the price you can get a great LCD TV thats a few inches larger and as good with contrast and color.... [ + quote]
KillerBug (AfterDawn Addict) 2 December 2009 0:08
*Quote:* *Originally posted by KillerBug:* They should be charged with crimes just for selling those energy waisting, lead-filled boxes. If the goal of the higher prices is to kill off this obsilite crap, then more power to them. How dare you i happen to like my toasty nay Crispy CRT Monitor Blacker Blacks Brighter colors and better refresh rates.. oh wait that's right LCD is like an expensive colored Etch A Sketch, don't shake to hard you'll wash out all that color. I know there are some crummy LCDs that don't have good colors, but this is not the standard. The blacks on my cheap Acer LCD screens are far better than the blacks on my old LG Tube monitor, the colors are more accurate, and the picture is more "solid"...if I look at a CRT TV, I can see the interlacing...not so with a LCD. The best video connections are all digital...if I plug my LCD in by the analog port, the black is no longer black, so why would you want an analog screen? [ + quote]
DXR88 (Senior Member) 2 December 2009 3:09
*Quote:* *Quote:* *Originally posted by KillerBug:* They should be charged with crimes just for selling those energy waisting, lead-filled boxes. If the goal of the higher prices is to kill off this obsilite crap, then more power to them. How dare you i happen to like my toasty nay Crispy CRT Monitor Blacker Blacks Brighter colors and better refresh rates.. oh wait that's right LCD is like an expensive colored Etch A Sketch, don't shake to hard you'll wash out all that color. I know there are some crummy LCDs that don't have good colors, but this is not the standard. The blacks on my cheap Acer LCD screens are far better than the blacks on my old LG Tube monitor, the colors are more accurate, and the picture is more "solid"...if I look at a CRT TV, I can see the interlacing...not so with a LCD. The best video connections are all digital...if I plug my LCD in by the analog port, the black is no longer black, so why would you want an analog screen? for the same reason people still want LP's. finding a cheap Well made PC LCD screen is like finding a .50 BMG round in the sporting goods section, why would you hunt with a anti materiel rifle is beyond me. CRTs are my personnel preference, i have had bad luck with LCDs. i may try OLED. whenever they become popular [ + quote]
KillerBug (AfterDawn Addict) 2 December 2009 5:26
*Originally posted by DXR88:* why would you hunt with a anti materiel rifle is beyond me. A .50 is a great comfort in bear country...even if you are not hunting. However, if you want to drop a dear from a mile away, competition grade .50 BMG rounds are a good choice...the longest confirmed kill in combat history was made with a McMillan Tac-50...the rabits won't have a chance! [DFI M2RS] [Athlon 9950] [ATI 3870HD] [Hauppauge WinTV-HVR-1600] [6GB Corsair DDR2] [4x Seagate ST31500341AS + 3ware 9690SA = 4.5TB RAID5] [2x Seagate 750GB + 2x Seagate 500GB + Adaptec 1430SA = 750GB RAID1 + 500GB RAID1] [Intel Gigabit NIC (PCI)] [LG 20X Lightscribe DVDR] [Coolmax 1200w Power Supply] [Logitech G15(first edition)] [Logitech G5(Second Edition)] [320GB Hitachi Boot] [320GB Hitachi Temp/Swap] [Modified and overgrown 4U Rackmount case] [22" & 24" screens mounted overhead] [Perfect Chair 085] [Logitech 5.1 Audio] [Windows 7 RC1] [ + quote]