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Showing results for:  “price gouging”

Albanese on the Apple e-books case: Apple’s Anticlimactic Appeal

In October of last year, I had the chance to interview Hachette CEO Arnaud Nourry from the stage at the Frankfurt Book Fair, and I asked him whether his 2009 concerns that low e-book prices would devalue the book—the driving factor behind the alleged e-book price-fixing conspiracy—were in the the past. After all, much has changed ... Albanese on the Apple e-books case: Apple’s Anticlimactic Appeal

Manne on the Apple e-books case: The Second Circuit’s decision has no support in the law and/or economics

As ICLE argued in its amicus brief, the Second Circuit’s ruling in United States v. Apple Inc. is in direct conflict with the Supreme Court’s 2007 Leegin decision, and creates a circuit split with the Third Circuit based on that court’s Toledo Mack ruling. Moreover, the negative consequences of the court’s ruling will be particularly acute ... Manne on the Apple e-books case: The Second Circuit’s decision has no support in the law and/or economics

Jacobson on the Apple ebooks case: It is hard to find an easier antitrust case than United States v. Apple

Try as one may, it is hard to find an easier antitrust case than United States v. Apple. Consider: The six leading publishers all wanted to prevent Amazon and others from offering best seller e-books at $9.99 (or other similar low prices). The problem, however, was that they had no mechanism for accomplishing that result. Then ... Jacobson on the Apple ebooks case: It is hard to find an easier antitrust case than United States v. Apple

Abbott on the Apple e-books case: Apple v. United States and antitrust error cost analysis

As Judge (and Professor) Frank Easterbrook famously explained over three decades ago (in his seminal article The Limits of Antitrust), antitrust is an inherently limited body of law. In crafting and enforcing liability rules to combat market power and encourage competition, courts and regulators may err in two directions: they may wrongly forbid output-enhancing behavior ... Abbott on the Apple e-books case: Apple v. United States and antitrust error cost analysis

Epstein on the Apple e-books case: The hidden traps in the Apple ebook case

On balance the Second Circuit was right to apply the antitrust laws to Apple. Right now the Supreme Court has before it a petition for Certiorari, brought by Apple, Inc., which asks the Court to reverse the decision of the Second Circuit. That decision found per se illegality under the Sherman Act, for Apple’s efforts ... Epstein on the Apple e-books case: The hidden traps in the Apple ebook case

Kolasky on the Apple e-books case: Another reminder that “easy labels do not always supply ready answers”

In my view, the Second Circuit’s decision in Apple e-Books, if not reversed by the Supreme Court, threatens to undo a half century of progress in reforming antitrust doctrine. In decision after decision, from White Motors through Leegin and Actavis, the Supreme Court has repeatedly held—in cases involving both horizontal and vertical restraints—that the only ... Kolasky on the Apple e-books case: Another reminder that “easy labels do not always supply ready answers”

Politicians Call for More Price Controls on Pharmaceuticals

Politicians have recently called for price controls to address the high costs of pharmaceuticals. Price controls are government-mandated limits on prices, or government-required discounts on prices. On the campaign trail, Hillary Clinton has called for price controls for lower-income Medicare patients while Donald Trump has recently joined Clinton, Bernie Sanders, and President Obama in calling for more ... Politicians Call for More Price Controls on Pharmaceuticals

Transparency in Pharmaceutical Pricing?

On January 12, 2016, the California state legislature will hold a hearing on AB 463: the Pharmaceutical Cost Transparency Act of 2016. The proposed bill would require drug manufacturers to disclose sensitive information about each drug with prices above a certain level.  The required disclosure includes various production costs including:  the costs of materials and manufacturing, the ... Transparency in Pharmaceutical Pricing?

The Ball-Rexam merger: The case for a competitive can market

A number of blockbuster mergers have received (often negative) attention from media and competition authorities in recent months. From the recently challenged Staples-Office Depot merger to the abandoned Comcast-Time Warner merger to the heavily scrutinized Aetna-Humana merger (among many others), there has been a wave of potential mega-mergers throughout the economy—many of them met with ... The Ball-Rexam merger: The case for a competitive can market

No good deed goes unpunished: EFF slams Google for alleged violation of ambiguous privacy pledge

I have small children and, like any reasonably competent parent, I take an interest in monitoring their Internet usage. In particular, I am sensitive to what ad content they are being served and which sites they visit that might try to misuse their information. My son even uses Chromebooks at his elementary school, which underscores ... No good deed goes unpunished: EFF slams Google for alleged violation of ambiguous privacy pledge

Chinese Competition Law Reform: Wise Guidance from the George Mason University Global Antitrust Institute

China’s Anti-Monopoly Law (AML) was enacted in 2007, and a stock-taking exercise is now appropriate.  Recently, the Chinese University of Political Science and Law released a questionnaire soliciting public comments on the possible revision of the AML.  On December 10, 2015, George Mason University Law School’s (GMULS) Global Antitrust Institute (GAI, ably managed by FTC ... Chinese Competition Law Reform: Wise Guidance from the George Mason University Global Antitrust Institute

Ignoring Decision Theory, the European Commission Continues to Waste Competition Enforcement Resources on Investigations of (Almost Certainly) Efficient Conduct

This blurb published yesterday by Competition Policy International nicely illustrates the problem with the growing focus on unilateral conduct investigations by the European Commission (EC) and other leading competition agencies: “EU: Qualcomm to face antitrust complaint on predatory pricing Dec 03, 2015 The European Union is preparing an antitrust complaint against Qualcomm Inc. over suspected ... Ignoring Decision Theory, the European Commission Continues to Waste Competition Enforcement Resources on Investigations of (Almost Certainly) Efficient Conduct