IP Colloquium: Statutory Damages and the Tenenbaum Litigation
Over at Doug Lichtman’s IP Colloquium, there is a new (and what looks to be very interesting) program up on the Tenenbaum file-sharing litigation. Here’s the description: Joel Tenenbaum looks a lot like every other defendant who has been accused by the music industry of illegally sharing copyrighted work online, but with one key difference: ... IP Colloquium: Statutory Damages and the Tenenbaum Litigation
Varney on RPM
I just saw this very good piece in The Deal from Sean Gates and Tej Srimushnam (Morrison & Foerster) on what Christine Varney’s appointment to the Antitrust Division might mean for enforcement decisions. Gates and Srimushnam predict that some of the most important changes associated with the Varney DOJ are likely to be the “return” ... Varney on RPM
Hazlett on the Analog Switchoff
Here is my colleague Tom Hazlett in the Financial Times on the silent death of analog broadcasts for a significant fraction of TV stations: Some 420 TV stations pulled the plug last week, joining another 200 analog stations that had already signed off. What was supposed to cause outrage and panic among TV viewers proved ... Hazlett on the Analog Switchoff
"Equilibrium Decadence" in Law and Economics?
Here is Justin Wolfers discussing what Paul Krugman has called “equilibrium decadence” in the context of the current macro debate: The claim is that academic macroeconomists have become mired in a particularly fruitless equilibrium, in which each is engaged in the search for ever-greater levels of formal elegance, at the expense of empirical relevance. There’s ... "Equilibrium Decadence" in Law and Economics?
Zywicki on Debt and Bankruptcy
Russ Roberts interviews my George Mason colleague Todd Zywicki here.
ALEA 2009 May 15-16 in San Diego
The program is available here. And I’m thrilled to report that my paper (with co-author Michael Baye), Is Antitrust Too Complicated for Generalist Judges: The Impact of Economic Complexity and Judicial Training on Appeals, has been selected for the conference. I’m very much looking forward to the panel and the conference in general. [UPDATE: Congratulations ... ALEA 2009 May 15-16 in San Diego
Perspectives on Ticketmaster/Live Nation
Links to the Congressional testimony are available here (including from Luke Froeb), an informative article in the WSJ, and another at MSNBC quoting Boston University’s Keith Hylton on the possibility that the post-merger firm would force sellers to reduce fees and pass-on lower ticket prices to consumers.
Why the Supreme Court was Correct to Deny Cert in Rambus
As TOTM readers are likely to know, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in Rambus, a course of action I had argued was the appropriate response to the arguments set forth in the Commission petition. I recently expanded the blog post into a short essay which I’ve posted on SSRN. It will also be available in ... Why the Supreme Court was Correct to Deny Cert in Rambus
Hello Chairman Leibowitz; Goodbye Chairman Kovacic
Here’s the press release. Congratulations to Chairman-to-be Leibowitz. I also note that this marks the end of Chairman’s Kovacic’s reign at the Commission. On a personal note, I had the pleasure of working for the Chairman during my stint as the FTC Scholar in Residence and consider myself extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity. ... Hello Chairman Leibowitz; Goodbye Chairman Kovacic
Unquestionably Correct?
An anonymous reader reminds me of the FTC Statement from Commissioners Harbour, Leibowitz and Rosch (but not Chairman Kovacic, who was recused) making the case against certiorari in Linkline: “The holding of the Ninth Circuit is unquestionably correct, and indeed merely echoes what other courts of appeals have held on the narrow issue presented to ... Unquestionably Correct?
Linkline Decision is Unanimous
The opinion is available here. Yet another super-majority Roberts Court antitrust decision applying consensus economic theory. No more price squeeze claims. Alcoa is not overturned. The Court declares that the price-squeeze claim in the absence of a duty to deal can be handled jointly by a straightforward application of Trinko and Brooke Group to the ... Linkline Decision is Unanimous
Cert Denied in Rambus
Hot off the press (HT: Antitrust Review). As TOTM readers will know, I think this is the correct result as I’ve argued here that the Supreme Court should indeed reject the Commission’s petition. I also believe the rejection is consistent with the Supreme Court’s antitrust case selection under Chief Justice Roberts in the sense that, ... Cert Denied in Rambus
