Samsung, LG fined over price manipulation

Six international LCD panel manufacturers, including South Korea's Samsung and LG, have been fined a record 353 million yuan in China for illegally manipulating the price of LCD panels, Chinanews.com reported.

From 2001 and 2006, the six enterprises took use of their dominant position in the industry and manipulated the price of LCD panels, according to National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). They sold more than five million panels during the time, earning around 208 million yuan.

The NDRC has ordered the companies to return 172 million yuan in overpayments to domestic color TV enterprises, confiscated an additional 36.75 million yuan and imposed 144 million yuan in fines, which resulted in overall 352 million yuan financial sanction. Samsung and LG faced combined fines of 220 million yuan.

The ruling marks the first and largest fine of this kind to international enterprises in China. Four other companies included in the sanction include Taiwanese companies Chi Mei, AUO, Chunghwa Picture Tubes and HannStar Display.

The six companies promised to follow China's laws and regulations, maintain market competition order, supply goods to China's TV industry at a fair price, and extend warranty of the panels from 18 months to 36 months, said Xu Kunlin, director of NDRC's Price Supervision and Inspection and Anti-Monopoly Bureau.

Nine Chinese TV companies have received a combined credit 172 million yuan so far, according to the report.