Price Fixing

PRICE FIXING REFERS to any usually unlawful practice in which competing corporations join together and agree to set or maintain an artificially high price, for commodities or services, to maximize profits. It may take place at either the wholesale or retail level and, although it need not involve every competitor in a particular market, it usually involves most of the competitors. According to the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, it is not necessary that the competitors agree to charge exactly the same price, or that every competitor in a given industry join the conspiracy. Price fixing can take many forms including, for example, establishing or adhering to price discounts, holding prices firm, eliminating or reducing discounts, adopting a standard formula for computing ...