Apple Defends Against Accusations of E-Book Price-Fixing

Arguing case before federal judge

Apple executive Eddy Cue on Thursday vigorously argued before a federal judge that the company did not try to hurt tech rivals by illegally pushing the publishing industry to adopt an anti-competitive e-books price program.

Instead Cue, the head of content and iTunes for Apple, portrayed the firm as singularly focused on its own foray into the e-books market that was dominated by rival Amazon.

Apple customers got "great prices, great selection, at a better bookstore," Cue said in response to Justice Department prosecutors at the Manhattan U.S. District Court.