July 15, 2021

Antitrust Statutorification

Nicolas Petit

[TOTM: The following is part of a symposium by TOTM guests and authors marking the release of Nicolas Petit’s “Big Tech and the Digital Economy: The Moligopoly Scenario.” The entire…

July 9, 2021

A First Glance at the Biden Executive Order on Competition: The Good and the Bad (Including Much that Looks Ugly)

Alden Abbott

The Biden Administration’s July 9 Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy is very much a mixed bag—some positive aspects, but many negative ones. It will have some positive effects…

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

June 25, 2021

Dynamic Merger Efficiencies: The Case of Pharmaceutical Markets

Alden Abbott

  The recent launch of the international Multilateral Pharmaceutical Merger Task Force (MPMTF) is just the latest example of burgeoning cooperative efforts by leading competition agencies to promote convergence in antitrust enforcement.…

June 22, 2021

The Virtues and Pitfalls of Economic Models

Dirk Auer

Interrogations concerning the role that economic theory should play in policy decisions are nothing new. Milton Friedman famously drew a distinction between “positive” and “normative” economics, notably arguing that theoretical…

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

June 13, 2021

NY ‘Abuse of Dominance’ Bill Attacks Consumer Welfare and the US Antitrust Tradition

Alden Abbott

U.S. antitrust law is designed to protect competition, not individual competitors. That simple observation lies at the heart of the Consumer Welfare Standard that for years has been the cornerstone…

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

June 10, 2021

Breaking Down House Democrats’ Forthcoming Competition Bills

Samuel Bowman

Democratic leadership of the House Judiciary Committee have leaked the approach they plan to take to revise U.S. antitrust law and enforcement, with a particular focus on digital platforms. Broadly speaking, the…

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

June 3, 2021

Conflicting Missions: The Risks of the Digital Markets Unit to Competition and Innovation

Samuel Bowman & Aria Babu & Sam Dumitriu

The UK's Digital Markets Unit will combine the powers and operating structure of a narrow sector regulator with a cross-sector purview that is much closer to the CMA’s economy-wide reach.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

May 27, 2021

The Globalization of Antitrust: A Cost-Benefit Appraisal

Alden Abbott

Virtually all countries in the world have adopted competition laws over the last three decades. In a recent Mercatus Foundation Research Paper, I argue that the spread of these laws has…

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

May 27, 2021

European Commission Objection to App Store Rules Lack Empirical Support

Paula Pernas Castrillo

The European Commission recently issued a formal Statement of Objections (SO) in which it charges Apple with antitrust breach. In a nutshell, the commission argues that Apple prevents app developers—in this case,…

Antitrust & Consumer Protection