Aug. 28 (Bloomberg) -- The Federal Court of Canada today rebuked Sotheby's for fixing prices from 1993 to 2000, ordering the auction house to prevent ``future illegal activities'' and pay for competition regulators' investigative costs.

The order, obtained by Canada's Competition Bureau, directs Sotheby's to take measures to ensure it complies with existing rules. Sotheby's also must pay for the C$800,000 ($720,000) probe and is barred from ``doing any act or thing directed in the commission of an offence'' forbidden by Canada's competition law.

Sotheby's, the world's second-biggest auction house, admitted to a U.S. court in October 2000 that it had conspired with larger rival Christie's International to fix prices in international auctions.

Canadian investigators focused on the potential for harm to Canadian customers, Denyse MacKenzie, the bureau's senior deputy commissioner of competition, said today in a telephone interview. While the regulator found no evidence that auctions in Canada were affected, it said the price-fixing may have hurt Canadians participating in international auctions.

Sotheby's profit from continuing operations rose 75 percent to a record $1.17 a share in the second quarter, helped by strong London sales and the auction of a Picasso portrait in New York, the company said Aug. 2. Net income climbed to $72.4 million, from $42.5 million, or 67 cents a share, a year earlier.

Christie's won't face a similar order from the Canadian court, because it benefits from immunity after cooperating with the investigation, MacKenzie said.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alexandre Deslongchamps in Ottawa at adeslongcham@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: August 28, 2006 12:58 EDT