Cimino et al v. Headway Technologies, Inc. et al, Civil Action No. 1:2019 cv 07428 (Southern District of New York)
This antitrust class action alleges that the manufacturers of hard disk drive (“HDD”) suspension assemblies have engaged in a global conspiracy to fix prices and allocate markets since May 2008. HDD suspension assemblies are a component of hard disk drives, which use magnetism to store information electronically.
Defendants TDK Corporation and NHK Spring Co., Ltd., along with their subsidiaries and affiliates, have been the leading manufacturers of HDD suspension assemblies, with a combined worldwide market share of approximately 90%.
For years, the United States and foreign governments have investigated potential price-fixing of HDD suspension assemblies. In 2019, Defendant NHK Spring Co., Ltd. admitted guilt. On July 29, 2019, the DOJ announced that Defendant NHK agreed to plead guilty and pay a $28.5 million fine for its role in a conspiracy to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing prices of HDD suspension assemblies sold in the United States and elsewhere.
This class action lawsuit alleges that, as a direct and proximate result of the price-fixing conspiracy, Plaintiffs and thousands of other individuals and entities paid more for HDD suspension assemblies than they otherwise would have paid in a competitive market. Plaintiffs seek to represent all persons and entities who, from May 2008 through such time as the anticompetitive effects of the price-fixing conspiracy ceased, indirectly purchased a product not for resale, which included as a component part one or more HDD suspension assemblies that were manufactured or sold by the Defendants (or their subsidiaries or co-conspirators).
If you have any questions concerning this case, please contact George Farah, at 212-477-8090 or [email protected]. A copy of the complaint can be found HERE.