“Our manufacturers based in China have been conspiring for years to put us out of business so that their own brands can dominate the market and raise prices,” Orion president Peter Moreo said in a press release in April when a federal court ruled that the case could proceed to trial.The Infinity 70mm telescope has a 70mm aperture and focal length of 700mm (f/10). 26 jury verdict for Orion’s antitrust case against Ningbo Sunny found that the company “engaged in anticompetitive conduct” and “had a specific intent to achieve monopoly power in the telescope manufacturing market.” That purchase was also part of Orion's complaint, with the company claiming Ningbo Sunny worked with another major telescope manufacturer to purchase Meade. Orion also said it was charged higher prices than another competitor was charged. Then, in 2013, Chinese manufacturing company Ningbo Sunny bought Meade Instruments, outbidding Orion and other competitors. That same year, Star Instruments and RC Optical Systems (now Deep Sky Instruments) sued Meade and some of its dealers on claims of false advertising. They mutually resolved the dispute in 2006. Federal Trade Commission blocked Meade from acquiring Celestron, saying the merger would potentially lead to a monopoly on Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes.Īnd, according to reporting from Sky & Telescope, Meade and Celestron lobbed a series of lawsuits at one another with accusations of patent infringement about GoTo telescope technology starting in 2001. The telescope industry is no stranger to such legal fights. We thank you for your valued support and look forward to continuing the Meade name.” Our customers will remain our highest priority. In posts on Facebook, Meade Instruments stated, “We will continue to support our products, our customers, and our network of dealers throughout this process. Meade is still selling products on its site as usual. When reached by email, the company did not confirm the report. And according to reporting by Bloomberg News, Meade now intends to sell itself. The text of Meade Instruments’ bankruptcy filing claims debts between $10 million and $50 million. However, the amount owed could triple because of the Sherman Antitrust Act, bringing the total closer to $50 million. According to the jury’s verdict - linked to from Orion’s website - Meade owes the retailer at least $16.8 million. ![]() ![]() 5 ruled that Meade and Ningbo Sunny must pay damages to Orion. The other company settled with Orion before the suit was filed and is not named in the complaint.Īfter the jury’s verdict, a U.S. In a legal complaint filed back in 2016, Orion accused Meade’s parent company of working with another major Chinese telescope manufacturer to fix prices and monopolize the American telescope market. “You basically end up with a big telescope in a small package,” Fried said. It’s a popular type of telescope among amateur observers, Fried said. Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes squeeze a long focal length - good for high-power observing - into a compact package. Meade and fellow telescope manufacturer Celestron are the two main producers of this type of telescope. It could also be a big blow to the availability and selection of Schmidt-Cassegrain telescopes on the market. But if Meade were to disappear, customers could lose support for their existing Meade products, Fried said. "They brought numerous likable products and innovations to the market," said Bart Fried, an amateur astronomer and vice president of the Amateur Astronomers Association of New York. The company has been making and selling affordable telescopes and accessories since the 1970s and is known for including convenient GPS and error-correcting features in its telescope mounts. ![]() Meade is a household name in the astronomy community.
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