Showing archive for: “DOJ”
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
Policy Debates On Patents Should Focus On Facts, Not Rhetoric (Forbes.com Op-Ed)
A heavily revised and expanded verison of one of my earlier blog postings was just posted as an op-ed on Forbes.com. This op-ed addresses how the FTC and DOJ have let themselves become swept up in anti-patent rhetoric, as evidenced by the FTC-DOJ workshop on December 10 that I participated in. Here’s a small taste ... Policy Debates On Patents Should Focus On Facts, Not Rhetoric (Forbes.com Op-Ed)
Debates on Patent System Should Focus on Facts, Not Rhetoric
The following is an op-ed I wrote last week on behalf of the Innovation Alliance, which represents innovators, patent owners and stakeholders from a diverse range of industries that believe in the critical importance of maintaining a strong patent system that supports innovative enterprises of all sizes. Unfortunately, the op-ed not find a home in a ... Debates on Patent System Should Focus on Facts, Not Rhetoric
Section 5 of the FTC Act and monopolization cases: A brief primer
In the past two weeks, Members of Congress from both parties have penned scathing letters to the FTC warning of the consequences (both to consumers and the agency itself) if the Commission sues Google not under traditional antitrust law, but instead by alleging unfair competition under Section 5 of the FTC Act. The FTC is rumored to be ... Section 5 of the FTC Act and monopolization cases: A brief primer
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
Dear DOJ: Take a Look at the Law Schools.
The U.S. Department of Justice sued eBay last week for agreeing not to poach employees from rival Intuit. According to the Department’s press release, “eBay’s agreement with Intuit hurt employees by lowering the salaries and benefits they might have received and deprived them of better job opportunities at the other company.” DOJ maintains that agreements among ... Dear DOJ: Take a Look at the Law Schools.
Real lawyers read the footnotes, but cite them only when relevant: A response to Harold Feld on the FCC SpectrumCo Order
“Real lawyers read the footnotes!”—thus did Harold Feld chastise Geoff and Berin in a recent blog post about our CNET piece on the Verizon/SpectrumCo transaction. We argued, as did Commissioner Pai in his concurrence, that the FCC provided no legal basis for its claims of authority to review the Commercial Agreements that accompanied Verizon’s purchase ... Real lawyers read the footnotes, but cite them only when relevant: A response to Harold Feld on the FCC SpectrumCo Order
From July 30 WSJ
Wall Street Journal OPINION July 31, 2012 ‘A Climate That Helps Us Grow’ By PAUL H. RUBIN President Obama’s riff on small business—”If you’ve got a business, you didn’t build that, somebody else made that happen”—has become a major controversy. The Romney campaign has made this quote the subject of several speeches and ads, and ... From July 30 WSJ
Who Killed Market Definition?
Louis Kaplow’s Why (Ever) Define Markets? in the Harvard Law Review was one of the most provocative papers in the antitrust literature over the past few years. We’ve discussed it here. I wrote: Kaplow provocatively argues that the entire “market definition/ market share” paradigm of antitrust is misguided and beyond repair. Kaplow describes the exclusive ... Who Killed Market Definition?
CPI Interview and Update on Ginsburg & Wrights’ “Antitrust Sanctions”
Competition Policy International has published an interview with Judge Douglas Ginsburg and me following up on our 2010 article “Antitrust Sanctions.” The interview ranges from topics such as whether the Occupy movements impact our proposal for use of debarment as an antitrust sanction in the United States to fairness concerns and global trends in antitrust ... CPI Interview and Update on Ginsburg & Wrights’ “Antitrust Sanctions”
Ginsburg & Wright on Dynamic Analysis and the Limits of Antitrust Institutions
Judge Douglas Ginsburg (D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals; NYU Law) and I have posted “Dynamic Antitrust and the Limits of Antitrust Institutions” to SSRN. Our article is forthcoming in Volume 78 (2) of the Antitrust Law Journal. We offer a cautionary note – from an institutional perspective – concerning the ever-increasing and influential calls for greater ... Ginsburg & Wright on Dynamic Analysis and the Limits of Antitrust Institutions
Changes at the FTC Bureau of Economics
Recently, the FTC announced that Howard Shelanksi would be taking charge of the Bureau of Economics on July 1st. Now comes news that DOJ economist Ken Heyer (and UCLA Bruin!) — longtime Economics Director at the Division — will be moving over to the Commission as Deputy Director for Antitrust. Leemore Dafny (Northwestern) will also come ... Changes at the FTC Bureau of Economics
