There is nothing that makes most consumers angrier than having to pay more for something than it is worth. A few years ago several of the world’s largest LCD panel makers conspired together to fix the price of TFT-LCD panels and sold the panels at inflated prices to computer makers.

So far several companies have been fined, including LG and Chunghwa Picture Tubes. Today the U.S. DOJ has announced that Hitachi has agreed to plead guilty and pay a fine of $31 million for its part in the LCD price fixing conspiracy.

The plea still has to go before the courts for approval. According to the DOJ Hitachi sold TFT-LCD monitors to Dell from April 1, 2001 to March 31, 2004 at inflated prices. So far the DOJ has sentenced several executives to prison time in America and fined the companies participating in the conspiracy a total of $585 million.

DOJ