Showing results for: “digital markets act”
Google's resistance and corporate social responsibility
The government subpoenas Google’s records, and also Yahoo!’s and Microsoft’s. MSFT and YHOO cave: Their stocks are down a little over and a little under 2%, respectively. Google resists. Its stock drops almost 9%. And yet a headline for an article by MSNBC’s chief economics correspondent–with the relevant stock prices immediately alongside–notes, “Google stand could ... Google's resistance and corporate social responsibility
A Decision-Theoretic Approach to Insider Trading Regulation
Regular readers will know that several of us TOTM bloggers are fans of the “decision-theoretic” approach to antitrust law. Such an approach, which Josh and Geoff often call an “error cost” approach, recognizes that antitrust liability rules may misfire in two directions: they may wrongly acquit harmful practices, and they may wrongly convict beneficial (or ... A Decision-Theoretic Approach to Insider Trading Regulation
Cablevision v. Viacom and the Sad State of Tying Doctrine
Whereas the antitrust rules on a number of once-condemned business practices (e.g., vertical non-price restraints, resale price maintenance, price squeezes) have become more economically sensible in the last few decades, the law on tying remains an embarrassment. The sad state of the doctrine is evident in a federal district court’s recent denial of Viacom’s motion to dismiss a tying action ... Cablevision v. Viacom and the Sad State of Tying Doctrine
Manne & Williamson get results from the FTC and DOJ!
My co-author, Marc Williamson, just alterted me to this section in the recently-published FTC/DOJ Merger Guidelines Commentary (.pdf): Industry Usage of the Word “Market� Is Not Controlling Relevant market definition is, in the antitrust context, a technical exercise involving analysis of customer substitution in response to price increases; the “markets� resulting from this definition process ... Manne & Williamson get results from the FTC and DOJ!
Lollapalooza and Antitrust
Apparently, the Illinois Attorney General is investigating Lollapalooza for potential antitrust violations arising out of exclusivity clauses that the concert promoter includes in the contracts signed with artists who play the show. The controversial radius clauses prohibit Lollapalooza acts ranging from the top headliners to the smallest “baby bands” at the bottom of the bill ... Lollapalooza and Antitrust
Lessons from Marrakech for US regulatory reform: All aboard the train
I thank Truth on the Market (and especially Geoff Manne) for adding me as a regular TOTM blogger, writing on antitrust, IP, and regulatory policy. I am a newly minted Senior Legal Fellow at the Heritage Foundation, and alumnus of BlackBerry and the Federal Trade Commission. Representatives of over 100 competition agencies from around the ... Lessons from Marrakech for US regulatory reform: All aboard the train
California Dreamin’: California Public Utility Commission must resist extreme regulatory overreach in the recently proposed conditions in Comcast-TWC merger
On February 13 an administrative law judge (ALJ) at the California Public Utility Commission (CPUC) issued a proposed decision regarding the Comcast/Time Warner Cable (TWC) merger. The proposed decision recommends that the CPUC approve the merger with conditions. It’s laudable that the ALJ acknowledges at least some of the competitive merits of the proposed deal. ... California Dreamin’: California Public Utility Commission must resist extreme regulatory overreach in the recently proposed conditions in Comcast-TWC merger
What is the Appropriate Role for State Antitrust Enforcement?
In the U.S. system of dual federal and state sovereigns, a normative analysis reveals principles that could guide state antitrust-enforcement priorities, to promote complementarity in federal and state antitrust policy, and thereby advance consumer welfare. Discussion Positive analysis reveals that state antitrust enforcement is a firmly entrenched feature of American antitrust policy. The U.S. Supreme ... What is the Appropriate Role for State Antitrust Enforcement?
Andrew Gavil on Revising the Merger Guidelines
1. Do the Merger Guidelines Need Revision? Yes. Conceptually, the current Guidelines incorporate multiple strands of intellectual and legal history with respect to merger analysis that have been layered one upon the other over time, but never effectively integrated. This now encumbers the application of the Guidelines and may be inhibiting the government’s capacity to ... Andrew Gavil on Revising the Merger Guidelines
More on Elizabeth Warren on Theory and Interpreting Data
With all the talk about the CFPB, Elizabeth Warren has been in the news lately. The blogs too. Most of the discussion has been about whether or not Timothy Geithner is a friend or foe to the Democrats’ preferred option of getting Warren nominated as the first chief of the CFPB. Today, Megan McArdle started ... More on Elizabeth Warren on Theory and Interpreting Data
David Schleicher on City Unplanning
Forbes interviews my colleague and office neighbor David Schleicher on his new and very interesting paper, City Unplanning. This paper continues Schleicher’s interesting line of research on the law and economics of cities with a creative and powerful analysis of the political economy of zoning in big cites. Here’s a brief snippet from the start ... David Schleicher on City Unplanning
An Economist’s Touch: Josh Wright’s FTC Legacy
The FTC was the brain child of Progressive Era technocrats who believed that markets could be made to run more effectively if distinguished experts in industry and economics were just put in charge. Alas, as former FTC Chair Bill Kovacic has chronicled, over the Commission’s first century precious few of the Commissioners have been distinguished ... An Economist’s Touch: Josh Wright’s FTC Legacy
