May 28 (Reuters) - Apple ( AAPL ) has failed to persuade a U.S.

appeals court to consider blocking a class action that accuses

the iPhone maker of monopolizing the market for iPhone apps and

keeping prices artificially high for tens of millions of

customers.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday rejected

Apple's ( AAPL ) bid for a pretrial appeal after a California federal

judge in February allowed consumers to band together to pursue

billions of dollars in alleged damages.

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers certified a class

of consumers who spent $10 or more on Apple ( AAPL ) app or in-app

purchases since 2008. The lawsuit, filed in 2011, accuses Apple ( AAPL )

of violating U.S. antitrust law by too tightly restraining how

customers download apps.

Apple ( AAPL ) and attorneys for the plaintiffs did not immediately

respond to requests for comment on Tuesday. The appeals court

panel denied Apple's ( AAPL ) appeal without a hearing.

Apple ( AAPL ) had argued that Rogers order would unfairly allow at

least 10 million App Store accounts to be included in the case

without the plaintiffs having shown how the account-holders were

allegedly harmed.

Lawyers for the Apple ( AAPL ) customers urged the 9th Circuit not to

hear the case, asserting that Rogers "faithfully" applied prior

rulings in her decision to approve class status.

Apple ( AAPL ) drew a parallel to a Google class-action of 21 million

consumers that the 9th Circuit said last year it would review.

But the appeals court never ruled in the Google case, after the

trial judge said he would reverse his order approving the class

action.

The Apple ( AAPL ) plaintiffs complained in a court filing earlier

this year that their case has "withstood too many delays because

of Apple's ( AAPL ) scorched-earth and wrong-footed litigation tactics."

Both sides have suggested a possible trial window for 2026.

The U.S. Justice Department separately in March accused

Apple ( AAPL ) in New Jersey federal court of monopolizing the smartphone

market. Apple ( AAPL ) has denied the claims and said it will ask a judge

to dismiss the lawsuit.

The case is In re Apple ( AAPL ) iPhone Antitrust Litigation, 9th

U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 24-875.

For Apple ( AAPL ): Theodore Boutrous Jr of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher

For plaintiffs: David Frederick of Kellogg, Hansen, Todd,

Figel & Frederick

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