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TOTM As it has before in its history, liberalism again finds itself at an existential crossroads, with liberally oriented reformers generally falling into two camps: those . . .
As it has before in its history, liberalism again finds itself at an existential crossroads, with liberally oriented reformers generally falling into two camps: those who seek to subordinate markets to some higher vision of the common good and those for whom the market itself is the common good. The former seek to rein in, temper, order, and discipline unfettered markets, while the latter strive to build on the foundations of classical liberalism to perfect market logic, rather than to subvert it.
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Popular Media The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), an agency historically concerned with vigorous market competition that leads to more output and lower prices, has of late been . . .
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), an agency historically concerned with vigorous market competition that leads to more output and lower prices, has of late been seemingly determined to raise prices for consumers.
TL;DR On Oct. 7, President Joe Biden signed an executive order to implement the U.S.-EU data-privacy framework.
On Oct. 7, President Joe Biden signed an executive order to implement the U.S.-EU data-privacy framework. The order had been awaited since March, when U.S. and EU officials reached an agreement in principle on a new framework, which EU officials insist must address concerns about surveillance practices by U.S. agencies. An earlier data-privacy framework was invalidated in 2020 by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) in its Schrems II judgment.
The European Commission will now consider whether to issue an “adequacy decision” for the U.S. This is urgent, because national data-protection authorities in the EU have been using a strained interpretation of the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) to prosecute various workarounds that companies have employed to transfer data between the U.S. and the EU. Like prior U.S.-EU arrangements, the order is likely to be challenged before the EU courts, but preliminary legal analysis suggests that this one has a greater chance of being upheld.
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TL;DR Sen. Richard Durbin’s (D-Ill.) amendment to 2010’s Dodd-Frank Act capped interchange fees on debit cards issued by large banks and required all debit-card issuers to permit routing of payments over multiple networks.
Sen. Richard Durbin’s (D-Ill.) amendment to 2010’s Dodd-Frank Act capped interchange fees on debit cards issued by large banks and required all debit-card issuers to permit routing of payments over multiple networks. Now, he and co-sponsor Roger Marshall (R-Kan.) have introduced the Credit Card Competition Act, which would impose similar routing requirements on credit cards. With the bill having few prospects to move forward on its own, Durbin and Marshall hope to attach it as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act.
As with the original Durbin Amendment, the mandate would benefit some competitors but won’t increase competition. Instead, by rigging markets, it will lead to higher costs, less security, and less innovation. Ultimately, consumers will be the losers.
Popular Media The Securities and Exchange Commission said this week that it has settled charges against Kim Kardashian for promoting a crypto investment on her Instagram page. In June . . .
The Securities and Exchange Commission said this week that it has settled charges against Kim Kardashian for promoting a crypto investment on her Instagram page. In June 2021, Ms. Kardashian touted EthereumMax’s token, EMAX, to her 331 million followers, without disclosing she was paid $250,000 for the post.
Popular Media The objective of the error-cost framework is to ensure that antitrust rules, enforcement decisions, and judicial outcomes minimize the costs of (1) erroneous condemnation and . . .
The objective of the error-cost framework is to ensure that antitrust rules, enforcement decisions, and judicial outcomes minimize the costs of (1) erroneous condemnation and deterrence of beneficial conduct (“false positives,” or “Type I errors”); (2) erroneous allowance and under-deterrence of harmful conduct (“false negatives,” or “Type II errors”); and (3) the costs of administering the system (including the cost of making and enforcing rules and judicial decisions, the costs of obtaining and evaluating information and evidence relevant to decision-making, and the costs of compliance).
TOTM The concept of European “digital sovereignty” has been promoted in recent years both by high officials of the European Union and by EU national governments. . . .
The concept of European “digital sovereignty” has been promoted in recent years both by high officials of the European Union and by EU national governments. Indeed, France made strengthening sovereignty one of the goals of its recent presidency in the EU Council.
Scholarship Abstract Background. The need for COVID-19 vaccine booster shots is controversial. When boosters were under active review in the U.S. in 2021, Krause et al.[1] . . .
Background. The need for COVID-19 vaccine booster shots is controversial. When boosters were under active review in the U.S. in 2021, Krause et al.[1] and others have argued that need for a COVID-19 booster for all adults has not been sufficiently established. In late 2021, U.S. regulators initially limited booster eligibility, waited months before allowing boosters for all adults, and even longer before recommending them, with public health officials sending mixed messages on booster value. We conduct a systematic review of COVID-19 vaccine effectiveness (VE) for primary and booster doses.
Methods. We conducted a systematic review of studies reporting COVID-19 vaccine efficacy or VE against four endpoints: any infection, symptomatic infection, hospitalization, and death for the four principal vaccines used in developed Western countries (BNT162b2, mRNA1273, Ad26.CoV2.S, and ChAdOx1-S), waning VE, and booster VE, during the period of Delta-variant prevalence. We reviewed all studies appearing on PubMed over Jan. 1, 2021 through March 31, 2022, supplemented with our own knowledge of other sources. 63 studies met defined inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Findings. The mRNA vaccines (BNT162b2, mRNA1273) had very high initial VE but experienced significant VE waning after approximately six months, including against severe disease and mortality, with BNT162b2 declining faster than mRNA1273. Both mRNA vaccines outperformed the Ad26.CoV2.S and ChAdOx1-S viral vector vaccines. Booster doses reduced symptomatic infection, severe disease, and mortality. Initial evidence supports booster value against the Omicron variant.
Interpretation. Strong epidemiological evidence supports waning VE for primary COVID-19 vaccination and the value of a booster dose, roughly 6 months after initial vaccination. The emergence of the Omicron variant strengthens the value of booster doses to recipients. Boosters also provide spillover benefits to others, both vaccinated and unvaccinated, by reducing downstream infections; reducing shortage risk for scarce COVID treatments; and reducing hospital overload.
Presentations & Interviews ICLE Academic Affiliate Dean Alderucci joined the All Things Data podcast to discuss patent analytics and the insight generated regarding innovation and momentum of advanced . . .
ICLE Academic Affiliate Dean Alderucci joined the All Things Data podcast to discuss patent analytics and the insight generated regarding innovation and momentum of advanced technologies. The full episode is embedded below.
