Remember those claims by the Authors Guild, the American Booksellers Association, and others that higher ebook prices under agency-pricing model introduced by Apple were responsible for attracting new investment to the business from the likes of Google and Microsoft? And that unless publishers could conspire to prevent Amazon from discounting ebooks, such investments would dry up? Well, never mind. Two weeks ago that court approved a partial settlement of the price-fixing case against the publishers, allowing Amazon to resume discounting.  And this week, IAC/InterActiveCorp chairman Barry Diller, who knows a thing or two about disruptive business opportunities, is pumping $20 million into a new ebook publishing venture in partnership with Hollywood producer Scott Rudin and the small, Brooklyn-based publisher, The Atavist. So much for price-fixing being a necessary condition for investment and innovation.