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The collection of all scholarly commentary on law, economics, and more

Showing results for:  “digital markets act”

Google Isn’t ‘Leveraging Its Dominance,’ It’s Fighting To Avoid Obsolescence

Six months may not seem a great deal of time in the general business world, but in the Internet space it’s a lifetime as new websites, tools and features are introduced every day that change where and how users get and share information. The rise of Facebook is a great example: the social networking platform ... Google Isn’t ‘Leveraging Its Dominance,’ It’s Fighting To Avoid Obsolescence

The Bulldozer Solution to the Housing Crisis

My inaugural blog on two-sided markets did not elicit much reaction from TOTM readers. Perhaps it was too boring. In a desperate attempt to generate a hostile comment from at least one housing advocate, I have decided to advocate bulldozing homes in foreclosure as one (of several) means to relieve the housing crisis. Not with ... The Bulldozer Solution to the Housing Crisis

Jonathan Macey for SEC Commissioner

In a must-read op-ed in today’s Wall Street Journal, Yale Law’s Jonathan Macey weighs in on Goldman Sachs’s decision to allow only foreign gazillionaires — no Americans, regardless of their wealth or sophistication — to invest in new shares of Facebook.  Numerous observers have portrayed Goldman’s move as a “victory for the SEC.”  The New York Times‘ ... Jonathan Macey for SEC Commissioner

"In the long run, my friend, it's your theory that's dead"

Russ Roberts’ brilliant and eagerly-awaited Keynes vs. Hayek rap video is here.  It’s the best economics pop music since Merle Hazzard.  Here are the lyrics: We’ve been going back and forth for a century [Keynes] I want to steer markets, [Hayek] I want them set free There’s a boom and bust cycle and good reason ... "In the long run, my friend, it's your theory that's dead"

Is it just me, or is Brad DeLong little more than an ideological hack? Krugman, too.

Hey, what a shock: Brad DeLong cites to a cursory and useless critique of the Efficient Market Hypothesis and declares it, with the author,  “refuted.”  Here’s Brad’s cite; here’s the original “refutation.”  The complete list is absurd (there are five purportedly refuted doctrines, including “the case for privatization” and “individual retirement accounts.” Seriously? Yep.). Perhaps ... Is it just me, or is Brad DeLong little more than an ideological hack? Krugman, too.

Securities prices and current events

When teaching efficient markets I like to have fun speculating about the limits of the theory.  The third edition of my casebook (Ribstein & Letsou, Business Associations), had a New Yorker cartoon which showed executives looking out their high-rise window at attacking flying saucers and remarking: “Drat! I suppose the market has already discounted this, ... Securities prices and current events

‘New Madison Approach’ Should Be Retained to Promote American Innovation

The leading contribution to sound competition policy made by former Assistant U.S. Attorney General Makan Delrahim was his enunciation of the “New Madison Approach” to patent-antitrust enforcement—and, in particular, to the antitrust treatment of standard essential patent licensing (see, for example, here, here, and here). In short (citations omitted): The New Madison Approach (“NMA”) advanced ... ‘New Madison Approach’ Should Be Retained to Promote American Innovation

Broadband Deployment, Pole Attachments, & the Competition Economics of Rural-Electric Co-ops

In our recent issue brief, Geoffrey Manne, Kristian Stout, and I considered the antitrust economics of state-owned enterprises—specifically the local power companies (LPCs) that are government-owned under the authority of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). While we noted that electricity cooperatives (co-ops) do not receive antitrust immunities and could therefore be subject to antitrust enforcement, we ... Broadband Deployment, Pole Attachments, & the Competition Economics of Rural-Electric Co-ops

Stan Liebowitz on Piracy and Music Sales

Stan Liebowitz (UT-Dallas) offers a characteristically thoughtful and provocative op-ed in the WSJ today commenting on SOPA and the Protect IP Act.  Here’s an excerpt: You may have noticed last Wednesday’s blackout of Wikipedia or Google’s strange blindfolded-logo screen. These were attempts to kill the Protect IP Act and the Stop Online Piracy Act, proposed ... Stan Liebowitz on Piracy and Music Sales

FTC Staff Report Misses the Mark on “Internet of Things” Regulation

Today the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) missed the mark in authorizing release of a staff report calling for legislation and regulation of the “Internet of Things.” The Internet of Things is already affecting the daily lives of millions of Americans through the adoption of health and fitness monitors, home security devices, connected cars and household ... FTC Staff Report Misses the Mark on “Internet of Things” Regulation

Is Google or the government the problem?

Well, you probably know my answer to that one. I was interested to read Fred von Lohmann’s short take on the privacy aspects of the Google Books Settlement, available here. Fred and the EFF have, basically, two concerns.  The first is that [t]he products and services envisioned by the proposed settlement will give Google not ... Is Google or the government the problem?

Will Federal Courts Adopt the 2010 HMGs?

Leah Brannon and co-author Kathleen Bradish, both of Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton, offer a skeptical view: In the half-century since du Pont, lower courts have continued to view market definition as a predicate to Section 7 claims. For example, the D.C. Circuit in FTC v. Cardinal Health, Inc. stated that “[d]efining the relevant market ... Will Federal Courts Adopt the 2010 HMGs?