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Guitar Center Subject Of Class Action Lawsuit

Posted by Bram Teitelman on Thu, Sep 24, 2009 at 10:57 am

Shady Business

20070627_guitar_center_logo_18[1]Hey musicians, did you buy a guitar from musical instrument giant Guitar Center between 2005 and 2007? If so, you might be eligible for a settlement. A class action lawsuit has been filed against both Guitar Center and the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM), claiming that the two conspired to fix pricing on fretted instruments including acoustic and electric guitars, banjos, violins, and more.

The suit claims that NAMM organized meetings and programs where competing retailers were encouraged to agree on strategies for price-fixing, which is anti-competitive.

“Guitars and other fretted instruments comprise a multi-million dollar industry in the United States alone, and one that’s heavily influenced by a handful of industry giants like Guitar Center,” said Steve Berman, lead attorney and managing partner at Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro, who filed the suit. “We contend that, even with its market domination, the company acted illegally to rig the marketplace to its benefit.”

The suit, filed on Tuesday in Los Angeles, also claims that defenants tried to quash competition from online retailers by threatening to boycott manufacturers selling through online competitors. If you bought a fretted instrument between 2005 and 2007, you can become part of the class action suit here.

 

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3 Comments For This Post

  1. Loaded Diaper Says:

    Guitar Center = loaded diaper lunch

  2. Aaron Says:

    Karma is a female dog.

  3. Tiffany Butts Says:

    I really learned a lot from reading this post. To be honest, I’m finding out more about becoming a better guitar player from your site, then I’ve ever did from any training ebook I’ve bought over the past few months. Hope it’s ok that I share this post on Mixx?

2 Trackbacks For This Post

  1. THIS SHOULD MAKE EYAL HAPPY | MetalSucks Says:

    [...] boy Bram Teitelman at Metal Insider reports that Guitar Center – a.k.a. “the bane of Eyal Levi’s existence” [...]

  2. AC/DC’s New Box Set Rocks – Literally | Metal Insider Says:

    [...] But that’s still not why you want the deluxe collector’s edition. Oh no it isn’t. The deluxe collector’s edition comes in a 12×12 replica of a guitar amp – THAT ACTUALLY WORKS! Yes, it’s a fully functional guitar amp. You can actually plug in your guitar and play along with the box set! Or better yet, play music that isn’t AC/DC. Regardless, if you buy one, you’re not only getting an assload of AC/DC rarities, you’re also saving yourself a trip to Guitar Center. [...]



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