Showing archive for: “FTC Act”
Revisiting the Theory and Evidence on State CPAs and FTC Act Section 5 Follow-ons
One of the most fundamental issues in the ongoing debate concerning the costs and benefits of expanded FTC Section 5 enforcement is the extent to which one must be concerned with its collateral consequences. A central claim of proponents of a broad interpretation of Section 5 coupled with its aggressive enforcement is that concerns with ... Revisiting the Theory and Evidence on State CPAs and FTC Act Section 5 Follow-ons
Intel Case the Model for the FTC?
So says this BusinessWeek headline based on an interview with Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jon Leibowitz. However, most of the article appears to be about establishing the Commission seeking to advance the proposition that the FTC Act expands beyond the scope of the antitrust laws. For example, the Chairman is quoted as saying “We would ... Intel Case the Model for the FTC?
DOJ Gears Up To Challenge Proposed Google-ITA Merger
The WSJ reports that the DOJ is getting itself ready to challenge the Google-ITA merger (see earlier TOTM posts here and here): Justice Department staff lawyers have begun preparing legal documents for use in a possible court challenge to the $700 million deal for ITA Software Inc., but no decision to proceed has been made, ... DOJ Gears Up To Challenge Proposed Google-ITA Merger
First reactions to the Intel Settlement
I just finished watching the FTC webcast announcing the Intel settlement and did a quick read over the agreement itself. Some quick high-level reactions: The tone of the press conference was triumphant, of course. Leibowitz claimed that the FTC got 22 out of 26 of the remedies proposed in the complaint and that Intel, which ... First reactions to the Intel Settlement
Intel Settlement Watch Part II
While Intel Corporation nears its settlement deadline with the Federal Trade Commission, it received good news from a federal district court in Delaware evaluating the evidence of alleged consumer harm from the discounts Intel offers to buyers. It is also very important to note that this pass from a US court applying standards of consumer ... Intel Settlement Watch Part II
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?
Why Congress Should Reject the FTC’s Request for a Trinko Exemption
One of the most significant issues in current US antitrust policy has been the Federal Trade Commission’s attempt to avoid some of the rigorous requirements imposed by Section 2 of the Sherman Act in monopolization cases by expanding FTC authority under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act (FTCA). This issue is nothing new. ... Why Congress Should Reject the FTC’s Request for a Trinko Exemption
An Antitrust Analysis of the Federal Trade Commission’s Complaint Against Intel
As readers of TOTM know, I’ve been critical of both the Federal Trade Commission’s Complaint against Intel from a consumer welfare perspective as well as the wobbly intellectual underpinnings of the Commission’s attempt to expand its FTC Act Section 5 authority to evade (see also here) the more stringent monopolization standards under Section 2 of ... An Antitrust Analysis of the Federal Trade Commission’s Complaint Against Intel
Are State Consumer Protection Acts Really Little FTC Acts?
I’ve posted to SSRN my latest on state consumer protection litigation, Are State Consumer Protection Acts Really Little FTC Acts?, co-authored with Henry Butler (Searle Center, Northwestern University School of Law). It is forthcoming in the Florida Law Review. The project aims to empirically examine the similarities and differences between state and federal consumer protection ... Are State Consumer Protection Acts Really Little FTC Acts?
Section 5, Collateral Consequences, and Counting Unicorns
Judge Frank Easterbrook once opined that observing predatory pricing was a bit like seeing a unicorn — in the sense that it was a phenomena around which there was much lore but not much empirical evidence. The debate over the current expansion of Section 5 liability increasingly has become about the search for a different ... Section 5, Collateral Consequences, and Counting Unicorns
David Balto (and the FTC) gets it woefully wrong on Intel
David Balto has penned a short apologia of the FTC’s Intel case (HT: Danny Sokol). Unfortunately his defense (and, unfortunately, the FTC’s case) is woefully misguided. Balto writes: Intel has been clearly dominant in the market for central processing units (CPUs) with between 80 percent and 98 percent of the market. The practices at issue ... David Balto (and the FTC) gets it woefully wrong on Intel
Economics versus politics in antitrust [#agworkshop]
Bill Northey, IA Ag Sec’y, sounds a bit like an economist (ah, turns out he has a degree in ag business and an MBA . . . ). Yes, price of seeds has gone up, but so has yield, and so has overall value. The issue, he says, is how to divide the surplus, and ... Economics versus politics in antitrust [#agworkshop]
