Biweekly FTC Roundup: Antitrust Woodstock Edition
Last week’s roundup was postponed because I was kibbitzing at the spring meeting of the American Bar Association (ABA) Antitrust Section. For those outside the antitrust world, the spring meeting is the annual antitrust version of Woodstock. For those inside the antitrust world: Antitrust Woodstock is not really a thing. At the planetary-orbit level, the ... Biweekly FTC Roundup: Antitrust Woodstock Edition
Biweekly FTC Roundup: Throwing Stones in Glass Containers Edition
In February’s FTC roundup, I noted an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal in which Commissioner Christine Wilson announced her intent to resign from the Federal Trade Commission. Her departure, and her stated reasons therefore, were not encouraging for those of us who would prefer to see the FTC function as a stable, economically grounded, ... Biweekly FTC Roundup: Throwing Stones in Glass Containers Edition
Reining in Digital Competition to No Good End: Will AICOA and OAMA Rise from the Grave?
The 117th Congress closed out without a floor vote on either of the major pieces of antitrust legislation introduced in both chambers: the American Innovation and Choice Online Act (AICOA) and the Open Apps Market Act (OAMA). But it was evident at yesterday’s hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee’s antitrust subcommittee that at least some ... Reining in Digital Competition to No Good End: Will AICOA and OAMA Rise from the Grave?
Biweekly FTC Roundup: Total Drama Island Edition
In a Feb. 14 column in the Wall Street Journal, Commissioner Christine Wilson announced her intent to resign her position on the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). For those curious to know why, she beat you to the punch in the title and subtitle of her column: “Why I’m Resigning as an FTC Commissioner: Lina Khan’s ... Biweekly FTC Roundup: Total Drama Island Edition
Biweekly FTC Roundup: A Guide for the Perplexed Edition
In a prior post, I made the important if wholly unoriginal point that the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) recent policy statement regarding unfair methods of competition (UMC)—perhaps a form of “soft law”—has neither legal force nor precedential value. Gus Hurwitz offers a more thorough discussion of the issue here. But policy statements may still have ... Biweekly FTC Roundup: A Guide for the Perplexed Edition
Biweekly FTC Roundup: Highly Skilled Sandwich Maker Edition
Happy New Year? Right, Happy New Year! The big news from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is all about noncompetes. From what were once the realms of labor and contract law, noncompetes are terms in employment contracts that limit in various ways the ability of an employee to work at a competing firm after separation ... Biweekly FTC Roundup: Highly Skilled Sandwich Maker Edition
Biweekly FTC Roundup: Grail-Shaped Beacon Edition
The lame duck is not yet dead, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is supposed to be an independent agency. Work continues. The Commission has announced a partly open oral argument in the Illumina-Grail matter. That is, parts of the argument will be open to the public, via webcast, and parts won’t. This is what’s ... Biweekly FTC Roundup: Grail-Shaped Beacon Edition
Biweekly FTC Roundup: Commissioners Bite Horse Edition
The massive New Deal sculptures that frame Federal Trade Commission headquarters are both called “Man Controlling Trade.” And according to the Commission’s new Policy Statement Regarding Unfair Methods of Competition Under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act, “Three Commissioners Controlling the Economy” appears to now be one of the agency’s guiding principles. The ... Biweekly FTC Roundup: Commissioners Bite Horse Edition
FTC Biweekly UMC Roundup – Mountain of Puffery Edition
Research still matters, so I recommend video from the Federal Trade Commission’s 15th Annual Microeconomics Conference, if you’ve not already seen it. It’s a valuable event, and it’s part of the FTC’s still important statutory-research mission. It also reminds me that the FTC’s excellent, if somewhat diminished, Bureau of Economics still has no director; Marta ... FTC Biweekly UMC Roundup – Mountain of Puffery Edition
FTC Biweekly UMC Roundup – Refugee from the FTC Edition
Faithful and even occasional readers of this roundup might have noticed a certain temporal discontinuity between the last post and this one. The inimitable Gus Hurwitz has passed the scrivener’s pen to me, a recent refugee from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and the roundup is back in business. Any errors going forward are mine. ... FTC Biweekly UMC Roundup – Refugee from the FTC Edition
