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

Showing results for:  “loyalty discounts”

The View from Turkey: A TOTM Q&A with Kerem Cem Sanli

How did you come to be interested in the regulation of digital markets? I am a full-time professor in competition law at Bilgi University in Istanbul. I first became interested in the application of competition law in digital markets when a PhD student of mine, Cihan Dogan, wrote his PhD thesis on the topic in ... The View from Turkey: A TOTM Q&A with Kerem Cem Sanli

The FTC’s Gambit Against Amazon: Navigating a Multiverse of Blowback and Consumer Harm

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is reportedly poised some time within the next month to file a major antitrust lawsuit against Amazon—the biggest yet against the company and the latest in a long string of cases targeting U.S. tech firms (see, for example, here and here). While specific details of the suit remain largely unknown ... The FTC’s Gambit Against Amazon: Navigating a Multiverse of Blowback and Consumer Harm

Rebuilding Trust in Coronaworld

Governments are beginning to lift the lockdowns they imposed to slow the spread of COVID-19. That is a good thing. But simply lifting the restrictions won’t immediately take us back to normality. For that to happen requires a massive investment in mechanisms that will rebuild trust. Prior to COVID-19, people implicitly trusted that travelling on ... Rebuilding Trust in Coronaworld

Debunking the Myth of a Data Barrier to Entry for Online Services

Recent years have seen an increasing interest in incorporating privacy into antitrust analysis. The FTC and regulators in Europe have rejected these calls so far, but certain scholars and activists continue their attempts to breathe life into this novel concept. Elsewhere we have written at length on the scholarship addressing the issue and found the ... Debunking the Myth of a Data Barrier to Entry for Online Services

Privacy Again

Today’s Wall Street Journal has a long article-debate on privacy.  The strongest pro-privacy is Christopher Soghoian of the Open Society Institute.  He confuses commercial privacy with government privacy: “The dirty secret of the Web is that the “free” content and services that consumers enjoy come with a hidden price: their own private data. Many of ... Privacy Again

FTC Microeconomics Conference

The Fourth Annual FTC Microeconomics Conference is scheduled for November 3 and 4, 2011.   Here is the call for papers: The Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Economics will host a two day conference to bring together scholars working in areas related to the FTC’s antitrust, consumer protection and public policy missions. Those areas include industrial ... FTC Microeconomics Conference

The SEC recommends broker-dealer fiduciary duties

The SEC staff,  acting under Dodd-Frank §913(g), has decided to recommend a “uniform fiduciary standard” for broker-dealers and investment advisors who provide investment advice to retail customers. The recommended rules would provide that the standard of conduct for all brokers, dealers, and investment advisers, when providing personalized investment advice about securities to retail customers (and ... The SEC recommends broker-dealer fiduciary duties

Will the FTC Sue Apple?

I don’t know.  But apparently, industry analysts preliminarily think not.   I tend to disagree.  At least, I think its far too early to be confident in either direction. Press reports, such as this one,  are primarily relying on the report of an analyst who correctly points out that Apple’s market share would be an ... Will the FTC Sue Apple?

"Prosocial," Output-Reducing Collusion

One of my antitrust students recently pointed me to a television commercial that could inspire a great exam question. Unfortunately, I didn’t see the ad until I’d finished drafting this semester’s antitrust exam (which I’ve been grading…hence the absence from TOTM). The T.V. commercial trumpets an agreement among the members of the American Beverage Association ... "Prosocial," Output-Reducing Collusion

Is the Intel/AMD Settlement Illegal?

So, AMD and Intel settled.  Its a case we’ve covered here in significant detail.  Terms haven’t been announced publicly.  AAI has predictably argued that the settlement shouldn’t preclude further enforcement action from NY and the FTC.   The NY Times suggests the same.  They may be right, although Herb Hovenkamp, among others, has suggested that the ... Is the Intel/AMD Settlement Illegal?

PeaceHealth and De Facto Exclusive Dealing, Part III

Josh’s thoughtful response (Bitchslap? Nah.) to my post criticizing the Ninth Circuit’s recent Masimo decision raises a number of important matters. I started to just submit a comment to Josh’s post, but then I figured a reply was post-worthy. (I don’t want the antitrust nerds who read these technical posts — and here’s to you, ... PeaceHealth and De Facto Exclusive Dealing, Part III

Call for Papers: FTC/Northwestern University Second Annual Microeconomics Conference

The Federal Trade Commission and the Searle Center at Northwestern are hosting the second annual Microeconomics Conference.  The conference will take place on November 19th and 20th at the FTC.  Here’s the conference announcement and call for papers: The Federal Trade Commission’s Bureau of Economics, Northwestern University’s Searle Center on Law, Regulation and Economic Growth, ... Call for Papers: FTC/Northwestern University Second Annual Microeconomics Conference