[Pcodaygs]

By Basil Katz | NEW YORK | Fri Jun 22, 2012 8:32pm EDT

(Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Friday set a 2013 trial date for a lawsuit from the U.S. government
accusing Apple and book publishers of conspiring to fix the prices of electronic books.

Following a hearing in Manhattan federal court, U.S. District Judge Denise Cote said a bench trial in
the case will begin June 3, 2013, for Apple and two publishers who are fighting the antitrust charges.

The U.S. Justice Department sued Apple in April, saying it colluding with five publishers to boost
e-book prices in early 2010, as the Silicon Valley giant was launching its popular iPad tablet.



Amazon Inc, which makes the Kindle e-reader, had long sold e-books for as little as $9.99. The
government complaint quoted Apple's late co-founder Steve Jobs as wanting to offer publishers a means
to boost prices, and "create a real mainstream e-books market at $12.99 and $14.99."

News Corp's HarperCollins Publishers, CBS Corp's Simon & Schuster and Lagardere SCA's Hachette Book
Group settled the case with the U.S. Justice Department.

The three publishers are also on track to submit a settlement proposal to the judge by the end of the summer
to resolve claims by a group of U.S. states, lawyers for the book companies and the states said on Friday.