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Showing results for:  “google”

That startup investors’ letter on net neutrality is a revealing look at what the debate is really about

Last week a group of startup investors wrote a letter to protest what they assume FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler’s proposed, revised Open Internet NPRM will say. Bear in mind that an NPRM is a proposal, not a final rule, and its issuance starts a public comment period. Bear in mind, as well, that the proposal ... That startup investors’ letter on net neutrality is a revealing look at what the debate is really about

Senator Markey’s Do Not Track Kids Act of 2013 Raises the Question: What’s the Point of COPPA?

The Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) continues to be a hot button issue for many online businesses and privacy advocates. On November 14, Senator Markey, along with Senator Kirk and Representatives Barton and Rush introduced the Do Not Track Kids Act of 2013 to amend the statute to include children from 13-15 and add ... Senator Markey’s Do Not Track Kids Act of 2013 Raises the Question: What’s the Point of COPPA?

Google: Great Deal or Greatest Deal?

Critics of Google have argued that users overvalue Google’s services in relation to the data they give away.  One breath-taking headline asked Who Would Pay $5,000 to Use Google?, suggesting that Google and its advertisers can make as much as $5,000 off of individuals whose data they track. Scholars, such as Nathan Newman, have used this ... Google: Great Deal or Greatest Deal?

Constitutional Dynamism: Responding to Tim Wu on “Machine Speech”, “Opportunism”, and First Amendment

William Buckley once described a conservative as “someone who stands athwart history, yelling Stop.” Ironically, this definition applies to Professor Tim Wu’s stance against the Supreme Court applying the Constitution’s protections to the information age. Wu admits he is going against the grain by fighting what he describes as leading liberals from the civil rights ... Constitutional Dynamism: Responding to Tim Wu on “Machine Speech”, “Opportunism”, and First Amendment

FTC Deservedly Closes Google Antitrust Investigation Without Taking Action

I have been a critic of the Federal Trade Commission’s investigation into Google since it was a gleam in its competitors’ eyes—skeptical that there was any basis for a case, and concerned about the effect on consumers, innovation and investment if a case were brought. While it took the Commission more than a year and ... FTC Deservedly Closes Google Antitrust Investigation Without Taking Action

Time for Congress to Cancel the FTC’s Section 5 Antitrust Blank Check

A debate is brewing in Congress over whether to allow the Federal Trade Commission to sidestep decades of antitrust case law and economic theory to define, on its own, when competition becomes “unfair.” Unless Congress cancels the FTC’s blank check, uncertainty about the breadth of the agency’s power will chill innovation, especially in the tech ... Time for Congress to Cancel the FTC’s Section 5 Antitrust Blank Check

The market realities that undermine the antitrust case against Google

As the Google antitrust discussion heats up on its way toward some culmination at the FTC, I thought it would be helpful to address some of the major issues raised in the case by taking a look at what’s going on in the market(s) in which Google operates. To this end, I have penned a ... The market realities that undermine the antitrust case against Google

Wright v. Rule at Columbia Law on Google and Antitrust

Charles (“Rick”) Rule, who represents Microsoft and is the head of the antitrust practice at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP, and I had an opportunity to debate the various antitrust issues involving Google and its search engine on last week.  I didn’t have much of a chance to report here on the blog over the ... Wright v. Rule at Columbia Law on Google and Antitrust

Competition for the Field on the Internet

Keith Woolcock (Time Business) offers an interesting perspective on what economists would describe as “competition for the field” between Apple, Facebook, Google, and Facebook.  It gives a good sense of the many dimensions of competition upon which these firms compete. The upcoming IPO of Facebook, the flak surrounding Twitter’s decision to censor some tweets, and Google’s weaker-than-expected 4th-quarter ... Competition for the Field on the Internet

Fed should stay out of Google/Twitter social search spat

As has become customary with just about every new product announcement by Google these days, the company’s introduction on Tuesday of its new “Search, plus Your World” (SPYW) program, which aims to incorporate a user’s Google+ content into her organic search results, has met with cries of antitrust foul play. All the usual blustering and ... Fed should stay out of Google/Twitter social search spat

Is Google Search Bias Consistent with Anticompetitive Foreclosure?

In my series of three posts (here, here and here) drawn from my empirical study on search bias I have examined whether search bias exists, and, if so, how frequently it occurs.  This, the final post in the series, assesses the results of the study (as well as the Edelman & Lockwood (E&L) study to ... Is Google Search Bias Consistent with Anticompetitive Foreclosure?

Renee Newman Knake on Corporations, the Delivery of Legal Services, and the First Amendment Part I

Last month the New York Times ran an editorial with the headline “Addressing the Justice Gap,” observing that “the poor need representation and thousands of law graduates need work.”  The piece proposed several solutions, but notably absent was the reform most likely to deliver legal services to those in need and to create jobs for ... Renee Newman Knake on Corporations, the Delivery of Legal Services, and the First Amendment Part I