Showing archive for: “International Antitrust”
Still Haven’t Found What the Bundeskartellamt Is Looking For: Thoughts on the German Amazon Case
Germany’s Bundeskartellamt (Federal Cartel Office, or FCO) issued a preliminary legal assessment last week suggesting that Amazon had potentially infringed both European and national rules on abuse of dominance. At issue in the investigation is Amazon’s price-control mechanisms, also known as pricing filters. The filters rely on algorithms and statistical models, particularly dynamic price caps ... Still Haven’t Found What the Bundeskartellamt Is Looking For: Thoughts on the German Amazon Case
The View from Taiwan: A TOTM Q&A with Andy Chen
Andy, could you please tell us about your professional background? I am a law professor with an SJD degree from Northwestern University in the United States. My field of study is antitrust law and law & economics. From 2007-2010, I served as commissioner of the Taiwan Fair Trade Commission (TFTC). After that, I resumed my ... The View from Taiwan: A TOTM Q&A with Andy Chen
New US Trade Agreements Could Grow the Economy
The Trump administration earlier this month announced a new trade agreement between the United States and the United Kingdom. This initial pact should be a harbinger of additional “win-win” American trade deals with the UK and other countries. Such agreements, besides reducing tariffs, could emphasize the mutual elimination of anticompetitive market distortions (ACMDs). Eliminating ACMDs ... New US Trade Agreements Could Grow the Economy
The EU Is Determined to Tear Down Apple’s ‘Walled Garden’
Last month’s decision by the European Commission fining Apple for breach of the Digital Markets Act’s (DMA) anti-steering provisions was just the latest in a series of EU attempts to open the iOS platform in order make it ostensibly more “fair” and “contestable.” But what it also made clear is that the Commission is no ... The EU Is Determined to Tear Down Apple’s ‘Walled Garden’
The Android Auto Decision and the European Antitrust Paradox
The European Court of Justice’s (ECJ) Android Auto judgment, delivered in late February, could mark a radical shift in how courts interpret the European Union’s essential-facilities doctrine, as well as the legal standard applied to “refusal to deal” cases. My colleague Giuseppe Colangelo has a great working paper analyzing the decision and its potential consequences. ... The Android Auto Decision and the European Antitrust Paradox
The View from Brazil: A TOTM Q&A with Gustavo Augusto Freitas de Lima
Gustavo, could you please tell us a bit about yourself and your professional background? I’m a law practitioner with a master’s degree in law and public policy, specializing in constitutional and administrative law. I served as a federal attorney and litigator before the Brazilian Supreme Court and was appointed by the attorney general as the ... The View from Brazil: A TOTM Q&A with Gustavo Augusto Freitas de Lima
Competition Confusion in the UK
UK Member of Parliament (former Conservative Party Cabinet Minister) Kit Malthouse published an essay in CapX earlier this month titled “We need a competition revolution.” I, of course, completely agree that competition is vitally important to any economy, and the UK has been struggling with productivity and growth challenges that may be linked to competition ... Competition Confusion in the UK
Rearranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic of Latin American Competition Policy
Competition authorities and policymakers around the world have devoted a growing proportion of their time and resources over the last decade to digital markets. Typically, this attention has been accompanied by vocal antipathy toward large digital platforms, as regulators and lawmakers invoke the need to “rein in digital monopolies” that allegedly cause a broad array ... Rearranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic of Latin American Competition Policy
Is Brazil’s Digital Markets Proposal Based on Genuine Consensus or Unproven Narrative?
A popular narrative has emerged in Brazil in recent years about the “genuine consensus” supporting the need for more stringent regulation of digital markets. This narrative has been fueled by a growing number of cases of alleged anticompetitive conduct by so-called “global mega-corporations,” including the Mercado Livre/Apple case and the more recent Meta/Apple case. The ... Is Brazil’s Digital Markets Proposal Based on Genuine Consensus or Unproven Narrative?
Are Trump’s Tariffs A Blessing in Disguise for Europe’s Tech Sector?
Less than a month has passed since President Donald Trump’s inauguration, but it is already clear that tariffs will be central to his administration’s economic policy and geopolitical strategy. Following an initial round of tariff threats against Mexico and Canada, and hiked tariffs on China, Trump is setting his sights on new targets—the European Union ... Are Trump’s Tariffs A Blessing in Disguise for Europe’s Tech Sector?
Five Key Lessons from Abroad for the UK CMA’s Google Search Probe
In the first investigation conducted under the new ex-ante regulatory framework established by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC), the United Kingdom’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is seeking to ascertain whether Google has “strategic market status” (SMS) in the search and search-advertising-services markets. The CMA is also tasked with weighing whether ex-ante ... Five Key Lessons from Abroad for the UK CMA’s Google Search Probe
DeepSeek Shows Why Regulators May Be Getting AI Wrong
For more than a year, competition regulators around the globe have been unified in issuing a clarion call that artificial intelligence (AI) risks becoming dominated by just a handful of firms. International competition agencies issued a joint statement in December warning that AI could entrench “market power” and reduce competition. Andreas Mundt, president of Germany’s ... DeepSeek Shows Why Regulators May Be Getting AI Wrong