Former Executive Indicted for His Role in Two Cathode Ray Tube Price-Fixing Conspiracies

The U.S. Department of Justice reports in its press release (quotation, not an independent finding): “WASHINGTON – A federal grand jury in San Francisco today returned a two-count indictment against the former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltd. for his participation in global conspiracies to fix prices of two types of cathode ray tubes (CRTs) used in computer monitors and televisions, the U.S. Department of Justice announced today. This is the first charge as a result of the Antitrust Division’s ongoing investigation into the cathode ray tubes industry. The indictment, filed today in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, charges Cheng Yuan Lin, aka C.Y. Lin, a resident of Taiwan, with conspiring with others to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing prices, reducing output and allocating market shares of color display tubes (CDTs) to be sold in the U.S. and elsewhere, beginning at least as early as Jan. 28, 1997, until at least as late as April 7, 2003. The indictment also charges C.Y. Lin with conspiring with others to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing prices for color picture tubes (CPTs) to be sold in the U.S. and elsewhere, beginning at least as early as March 12, 1997, until at least as late as April 7, 2003. CRTs consist of evacuated glass envelopes that contain an electron gun and a phosphorescent screen. When electrons strike the screen, light is emitted, creating an image on the screen. CDTs and CPTs are each types of CRTs. CDTs are used in computer monitors and other specialized applications, while CPTs are used in color televisions. The worldwide market for CRTs, including CPTs and CDTs, in 1997, at the start of th”