Amazon wins EU e-book pricing war with Apple Such clauses bar publishers Simon & Schuster, News Corp unit HarperCollins, Lagardere SCA's Hachette Livre and Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holtzbrinck, the owner of German company Macmillan, from making deals with rival retailers to sell e-books more cheaply than Apple. The agreements, which critics say prevent Amazon and other retailers from undercutting Apple's charges, led to the EU antitrust investigation in December last year. Pearson Plc's Penguin group, which is also under investigation, was not part of Thursday's settlement. The Commission said Penguin had offered concessions expected to resolve the matter with the competition authorities. Companies found guilty of infringing EU rules can be fined up to 10pc of their global sales, which in Apple's case could reach $15.6bn, based on its 2012 fiscal year. UBS analysts estimate e-books account for about 30pc of the US book market and 20pc of sales in Britain but are minuscule elsewhere. Amazon charged $9.99 per book when it launched its Kindle e-reader. Apple's agency model let publishers set prices in return for a 30pc cut to the maker of iPhone and iPad. According to Albert Greco, a professor at Fordham University, Amazon's share of the US e-book market reaches 65pc, ahead of Barnes & Noble's 27pc share. HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster and Hachette have settled with the US Department of Justice in a similar investigation but Apple, Penguin Group and Macmillan have not.