Showing results for: “digital markets act”
Global Antitrust Institute’s Comments on Draft DOJ-FTC IP Guidelines are on the Mark
The Global Antitrust Institute (GAI) at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School released today a set of comments on the joint U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) – Federal Trade Commission (FTC) August 12 Proposed Update to their 1995 Antitrust Guidelines for the Licensing of Intellectual Property (Proposed Update). As has been the case with ... Global Antitrust Institute’s Comments on Draft DOJ-FTC IP Guidelines are on the Mark
Bork and the Antitrust Paradox Revisited
The Harvard Journal on Law and Public Policy recently published a symposium on the contributions of Judge Robert Bork. Readers of TOTM might be interested in three essays on Bork’s enduring contributions to antitrust law from Judge Frank Easterbrook, Judge Douglas Ginsburg, and Professor George Priest. The following excerpt from Easterbrook’s essay, I thought, was ... Bork and the Antitrust Paradox Revisited
Congratulations…but let’s not over do it
I was waiting to write something about today’s announcement of the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economics being awarded to Diamond, Mortensen, and Pissarides. Josh has already provided his thoughts and provided links to comments by Ed Glaeser and Steve Levitt, respectively. As they describe it, the honorees’ research provides a theory of unemployment, explaining why ... Congratulations…but let’s not over do it
AOL/Time Warner merger conditions are a template for disastrous tech policy
Senator Mark Warner has proposed 20 policy prescriptions for bringing “big tech” to heel. The proposals — which run the gamut from policing foreign advertising on social networks to regulating feared competitive harms — provide much interesting material for Congress to consider. On the positive side, Senator Warner introduces the idea that online platforms may ... AOL/Time Warner merger conditions are a template for disastrous tech policy
COVID-19, Ghost Flights, and Emerging Property Rights in Airport Slots
One of the most visible economic effects of the COVID-19 spread is the decrease in airline customers. Alec Stapp alerted me to the recent outrage over “ghost flights,” where airlines fly nearly empty planes to maintain their “slots.” The airline industry is unfortunately in economic freefall as governments prohibit and travelers pull back on air ... COVID-19, Ghost Flights, and Emerging Property Rights in Airport Slots
Brennan: Guidance on Enforcement Against “Pure” Vertical Mergers: It’s Complicated
[TOTM: The following is part of a symposium by TOTM guests and authors on the 2020 Vertical Merger Guidelines. The entire series of posts is available here.] This post is authored by Timothy J. Brennan (Professor, Public Policy and Economics, University of Maryland; former Chief Economist, FCC; former economist, DOJ Antitrust Division).] The DOJ Antitrust ... Brennan: Guidance on Enforcement Against “Pure” Vertical Mergers: It’s Complicated
What Is a Barrier to Entry?
Why do monopolies exist? Many textbooks point to barriers to entry as a cause of monopolies. Tyler Cowen and Alex Tabarrok’s textbook says: “In addition to patents, government regulation and economies of scale, monopolies may be created whenever there is a significant barrier to entry, something that raises the cost to new firms of entering the industry.” ... What Is a Barrier to Entry?
Some thoughts on in-house lawyers
Those attending the Wisconsin in-house counsel conference this weekend (kudos to Jonathan Lipson for a well-organized and comprehensive program) got a great overview of the problems and opportunities facing the lawyers who work inside corporations. Here’s some brief observations. As previously reported, my own contribution focused on how technology might significantly affect in-house lawyers’ work, ... Some thoughts on in-house lawyers
Allocating the Costs of Fraud
Geoffrey A. Manne is Executive Director of the International Center for Law & Economics and a Lecturer in Law at Lewis & Clark Law School. I take to heart Jim’s claim that fraud is too-little discussed in this realm given its cost, and thus I’ll try my hand at it. Every discussion of the industrial ... Allocating the Costs of Fraud
Debunking the ‘Cross-Subsidy’ Theory
In our earlier post, we observed that the GAO report on interchange got off on the wrong foot when it concluded that interchange fees were rising. We infer from the silence which greeted our post that everyone agrees with this criticism. Indeed, yesterday’s posts and comments appear to agree that the GAO’s report does very ... Debunking the ‘Cross-Subsidy’ Theory
Why Now? The Faulty Economics of Credit Card Reform
About four years ago, I worked for Visa in opposing the opposed limitations on interchange fees that the Australian government was about to impose on the credit card industry. The situation there, like the situation in the United States, seemed hardly propitious for reform. The use of credit cards was rapidly expanding, and the rate ... Why Now? The Faulty Economics of Credit Card Reform
Litigation funding grows
Looking for something in the market that’s growing instead of shrinking? Try litigation. The WSJ surveys the current landscape of litigation funding, discussing three new U.S. entrants: BlackRobe Capital Partners LLC, with John P.”Sean” Coffey, formerly of Bernstein Litowitz and 2010 Democratic nominee for NY AG; Fulbrook Management LLC, and Bentham Capital LLC. The article ... Litigation funding grows
