De Beers Pleads Guilty to Price Fixing

[pricescope]

De Beers pleaded guilty in a 10-year-old price-fixing case Tuesday and was fined $10 million fine as part of an agreement that would clear the way for the diamond giant to resume selling diamonds directly in the lucrative U.S. market.

Full story

 

[WinkHPD]

Just curious, how many of you consumers think it will be good or bad if DeBeers comes back into the country? Do you have opinions, or do you care?

Wink

 

[valeria101]

That's soooo cheap !!!

Thanks for the news

 

[questionsRus]

make a poll!

 

[WinkHPD]

No let's discuss it. What do you think?

Wink

 

[noobie]

----------------
On 7/13/2004 3:58:19 PM Wink wrote:





Just curious, how many of you consumers think it will be good or bad if DeBeers comes back into the country? Do you have opinions, or do you care?

Wink
----------------

I don't know enough about how the behaved in the past and what they did? Can you provide some details into their role? How do you you perceive they will enter in the future? I probably care but need more information and to think about it before forming an opinion

However, a $10M fine to them for price fixing seems to me the same as fining some of the Enron and Worldcom guys a dollar for their crimes.

 

[ame]

I hope that it will make prices go down but value go up. Is that possible?

Honestly, I really don't care.

 

[icelady]

----------------
On 7/13/2004 4:42:40 PM Wink wrote:

No let's discuss it. What do you think?

Wink----------------

I don't know what to believe. Some on the forum have said they didn't see DeBeers as the sole reason for diamonds being as expensive as they are, that they are not holding back rough. As I said, I really don't know what to believe, but they bother me. It seems like a monopoly to me.

I am all for bringing the prices down some (especially with the latest bad news on price increases) so that I can feed my diamond habit, which is rapidly being fueled by PS!

 

[just-ice]

I can't see the prices coming down...although I would love it if it did. With commerce as it is today...I can't think of anything returning to lower prices. The demand for diamonds is still high..they won't kill the golden goose.My suspicion is that they may not have been able to sell to the US market "directly" they were still moving their stones.There are loop-holes too everything.

 

[Nicrez]

As I see it, DeBeers did some serious plea bargaining, or some serious palm greasing to get away with $10 Million penalty. That's barely a slap on the finger.

Last year's profits ALONE were $676 Million from $5.5 Billion in sales, then multiply that by the 60+ years they fixed prices, and that is SO RIDICULOUSLY disproportionate!

Also, in the article Leonid posted, their statement is that they said, "the company has no plans to directly enter the U.S. retail market.", yet they bought over LVMH as a means to gain a valid entrance into the US market, and had plans to open stores in NY and LA, selling diamonds, which are even outlined in their business plans... I wonder why the discrepancy...?

 

[hoorray]

I have a hard time seeing that DeBeers entry into the US would be good for anyone but De Beers. Often the entry of a big player means price pressure, which is good for consumers, bad for suppliers. I don't know the whole history of their business practices, -- particularly on the supply chain side, which might be where they exert the most influence, but they are pretty darn good at influencing consumer thinking through marketing, and obviously into keeping prices elevated. Who benefits?

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

Paltry sum. Equivalent of two of Jo-Lo's ER rings--DeBeers supplied.
As usual, they are laughing all the way to all the banks.

Sharon

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

Who cares?

They always sold rough to US cutters.

They always operated PR through seperate PR companies in all countries.

And why would anyone think De Beers could run successful retail stores?

What will change?

Who will care?

 

[valeria101]

De Beers retail is a scary idea ! Not that it could not happen - after all, US is the largest retail market and they bought entry so darn cheap ... The questions might be if they want full fledged vertical integrations aside market control. After loosing market share for the past decade (at least by taking public stats at face value) De Beers may well move from it's old, safe position.

Another questions is: would such a move affect their current business? I definitely do not know enough to guess this one. Interesting ?

 

[strmrdr]

The lawsuit just settles the area of industrial diamonds.
The class action suits over consumer sales are still on going.
If it was me id wait untill they extablished some us stores then file a rico lawsuit and take em :}
Its a lot easier to collect after they have US assets.

Anything that hurts them is fine with me anything that directly helps them sucks :}

 

[chialea]

Their business practices really annoy me. I guess this just means that I'll have the chance to boycott them in a somewhat closer fashion.

 

[coldfusion]

As much as I'd like to believe De Beers is turning over a new leaf, i don't think settling the lawsuit has anything but their pocketbooks in mind.

The facts:
1. It was illegal for them to set foot in the largest diamond market in the world.
2. De Beers image is terrible in the US.
3. Diamonds in general have gotten a bad image the last few years due to images of children in africa with amputated limbs.
4. The colored gemstone engagement ring is becoming more and more popular. I see people with them all the time now.
5. De Beers will be opening a joint-venture retail store in NY. Cutting out a middle man means more money for them.