ABSTRACT
It used to be a common practice in Britain for record companies to force shops to sell their records at a set price. This system was called retail price maintenance. Retailers could not sell the product at a reduced price, and this ensured the record companies got a healthy return. It also meant customers had to pay higher prices. Such restrictions on market activity are now recognized as being against the interests of the consumer and the market, so in 1964 the British government made the practice illegal. This meant that people could sell records for whatever price they liked, opening the opportunity for price competition.
