Samsung, Micron, and Hynix Reportedly Slapped with Colossal Antitrust Fines

[Arctucas]

Ofc the fines benefit the Government but it's not that Government benefits: it's that the infringing companies get penalized.

If @ all possible (via legislation, perhaps), a good chunk of such fines should be distributed to those that applied for it, via proof they were among the victims (invoices).

And subsequently, the cost of those penalties will eventually get passed on to the end consumer anyway.

I agree that repaying those actually wronged would be the fairest solution.

But you're argument is that the people that were ripped off, tax payers*, should instead pay more money in the form of taxes to pay for the imprisonment of these blue collar criminals? That doesn't make much sense to me.

The fines are a decent compromise. It takes away the thing that is currently most important to these people, their money.

However, the fines are not high enough, IMO. Samsung alone makes almost $225 Billion a year, so even if they get the maximum of $8 Billion in fines, it doesn't really deter them from continuing the practice of price fixing(obviously since this is like the 2nd or 3rd time they've been caught doing it). They need to be fined in the $100s of Billions against the company, as well as personal fines against the management people involved that is proportional to their yearly income, ~50% of their yearly income. The tiny monetary slaps on the wrist that they do right now does nothing to deter price fixing.

*The argument can be made that essentially every tax payer is a victim here, since anyone with an any modern electronic device is effectively a victim. And there likely aren't a lot of tax payers that have no modern electronic device.

How many white collar criminals are we talking about, a few dozen? A mere drop in the bucket, and, any fines would more than pay for their incarceration anyway.

You would suggest crippling fines that could potentially cause many, many workers to lose their jobs, because the company may no longer have the resources to effectively maintain their workforce?

 

[HTC]

And subsequently, the cost of those penalties will eventually get passed on to the end consumer anyway.

I agree that repaying those actually wronged would be the fairest solution.



How many white collar criminals are we talking about, a few dozen? A mere drop in the bucket, and, any fines would more than pay for their incarceration anyway.

You would suggest crippling fines that could potentially cause many, many workers to lose their jobs, because the company may no longer have the resources to effectively maintain their workforce?

If it's the "small" $8 billion fine, i can totally see that happening but if the fines were anything like i suggested in a previous reply, i seriously doubt it. They could increase prices in an attempt to mitigate the losses from fines BUT no way would it amount to the sort of values in question, which is why i think it would work as deterrent.

However, and until the laws are changed to enable these types of fines, companies executives can get away with these sorts of practices because any eventual fines can:

- cost less than the revenue obtained from the infringement(s) in the 1st place
- be mitigated / countered by further rise in prices, like you suggested

Unless fines are high enough to counter this sort of thing, which is why i suggested a "small" 30+% annual income fine.