Showing archive for: “UK”
Income-contingent Loans as a COVID Policy Backstop
[TOTM: The following is part of a blog series by TOTM guests and authors on the law, economics, and policy of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The entire series of posts is available here. This post is authored by Sam Bowman, (Director of Competition Policy, ICLE).] No support package for workers and businesses during the coronavirus shutdown can be ... Income-contingent Loans as a COVID Policy Backstop
What Has Big Tech Ever Done for Us? Part Two
[TOTM: The following is part of a blog series by TOTM guests and authors on the law, economics, and policy of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The entire series of posts is available here. This post is authored by Dirk Auer, (Senior Researcher, Liege Competition & Innovation Institute; Senior Fellow, ICLE).] Across the globe, millions of ... What Has Big Tech Ever Done for Us? Part Two
“You don’t get to be the umpire and have a team”: should we regulate the activities of digital platforms in neighboring markets?
This guest post is by Patrick Todd, an England-qualified solicitor and author on competition law/policy in digital markets. The above quote is not about Democrat-nominee hopeful Elizabeth Warren’s policy views on sport. It is in fact an analogy to her proposal of splitting Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple (“GAFA”) apart from their respective ancillary lines ... “You don’t get to be the umpire and have a team”: should we regulate the activities of digital platforms in neighboring markets?
Economics is Dead. Long Live Economics! A Review of The Economists’ Hour
John Maynard Keynes wrote in his famous General Theory that “[t]he ideas of economists and political philosophers, both when they are right and when they are wrong, are more powerful than is commonly understood. Indeed the world is ruled by little else. Practical men who believe themselves to be quite exempt from any intellectual influence, ... Economics is Dead. Long Live Economics! A Review of The Economists’ Hour
On the Antitrust Risks of Four to Three Mergers: A Case Study of a Potential ThyssenKrupp/Kone Merger
Today, Reuters reports that Germany-based ThyssenKrupp has received bids from three bidding groups for a majority stake in the firm’s elevator business. Finland’s Kone teamed with private equity firm CVC to bid on the company. Private equity firms Blackstone and Carlyle joined with the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board to submit a bid. A third ... On the Antitrust Risks of Four to Three Mergers: A Case Study of a Potential ThyssenKrupp/Kone Merger
Why Data Is Not the New Oil
“Data is the new oil,” said Jaron Lanier in a recent op-ed for The New York Times. Lanier’s use of this metaphor is only the latest instance of what has become the dumbest meme in tech policy. As the digital economy becomes more prominent in our lives, it is not unreasonable to seek to understand ... Why Data Is Not the New Oil
Seven Things Netflix’s ‘The Great Hack’ Gets Wrong About the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica Data Scandal
And if David finds out the data beneath his profile, you’ll start to be able to connect the dots in various ways with Facebook and Cambridge Analytica and Trump and Brexit and all these loosely-connected entities. Because you get to see inside the beast, you get to see inside the system. This excerpt from the ... Seven Things Netflix’s ‘The Great Hack’ Gets Wrong About the Facebook–Cambridge Analytica Data Scandal
Separation without a Breakup
[This post is the fourth in an ongoing symposium on “Should We Break Up Big Tech?“that features analysis and opinion from various perspectives.] [This post is authored by Pallavi Guniganti, editor of Global Competition Review.] Start with the assumption that there is a problem The European Commission and Austria’s Federal Competition Authority are investigating Amazon ... Separation without a Breakup
Breaking Up: “It’s Not You, It’s Me”, “Maybe We Should See Other People” and “with or without You”
[This post is the second in an ongoing symposium on “Should We Break Up Big Tech?” that will feature analysis and opinion from various perspectives.] [This post is authored by Philip Marsden, Bank of England & College of Europe, IG/Twitter: @competition_flaneur] Since the release of our Furman Report, I have been blessed with an uptick in #antitrusttourism. ... Breaking Up: “It’s Not You, It’s Me”, “Maybe We Should See Other People” and “with or without You”
What Zoom can tell us about network effects and competition policy in digital markets
Zoom, one of Silicon Valley’s lesser-known unicorns, has just gone public. At the time of writing, its shares are trading at about $65.70, placing the company’s value at $16.84 billion. There are good reasons for this success. According to its Form S-1, Zoom’s revenue rose from about $60 million in 2017 to a projected $330 ... What Zoom can tell us about network effects and competition policy in digital markets
UK COURT OF APPEAL UPHOLDS FRAND INJUNCTION
Last week, the UK Court of Appeal upheld the findings of the High Court in an important case regarding standard essential patents (SEPs). Of particular significance, the Court of Appeal upheld the finding that the defendant, an implementer of SEPs, could have the sale of its products enjoined in the UK unless it enters into ... UK COURT OF APPEAL UPHOLDS FRAND INJUNCTION
Applying harm reduction to smoking
Abstinence approaches work exceedingly well on an individual level but continue to fail when applied to populations. We can see this in several areas: teen pregnancy; continued drug use regardless of severe criminal penalties; and high smoking rates in vulnerable populations, despite targeted efforts to prevent youth and adult uptake. The good news is that ... Applying harm reduction to smoking
