US regulators seek cancellation of Apple's e-book contracts following 'price-fix row'

The US regulators have reportedly called for software giant Apple to cancel certain e-book contracts with major publishers following the recent allegations in which the company was found to be involved in illegally fixing e-book prices with publishers to disrupt the market competition.

According to the BBC, the regulators are also seeking five-year ban on Apple on entering distribution contracts deemed anti-competitive.

The report said that the Department of Justice and 33 State Attorneys General submitted their 'remedy' to the court ahead of a hearing on 9 August.

The regulators called for Apple to offer links to other e-book retailers like Amazon and Barnes and Noble for two years so that consumers who bought e-books on their iPads and iPhones could compare Apple's prices with those of its competitors.

They said that this would 'reset competition to the conditions that existed before the conspiracy', the report added.