Popular Media Archives - Page 2 of 211 - International Center for Law & Economics

October 8, 2019

Why Data Is Not the New Oil

Alec Stapp

“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.

Data Security & Privacy

October 1, 2019

Any Way You Measure It, Warren Is Wrong to Claim “Facebook and Google Account for 70% of All Internet Traffic”

Alec Stapp

Seeing internet traffic is not the same thing as “account[ing] for” — or controlling or even directly influencing — internet traffic.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

September 27, 2019

Debunking Elizabeth Warren’s Claim That “More Than 70% of All Internet Traffic Goes through Google or Facebook”

Alec Stapp

Less than 20 percent of all Internet traffic goes through sites owned or operated by Google or Facebook. While this statistic may be less eye-popping than the one trumpeted by Warren and other antitrust activists, it does have the virtue of being true.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

September 17, 2019

Vertical Mergers: Fast Food, Folklore, and Fake News

Eric Fruits

While the folklore of locking up distribution channels to eliminate double marginalization fits nicely with theory, the facts suggest a more mundane model of a firm scrambling to deliver shareholder wealth through diversification in the face of changing competition.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

September 13, 2019

The Real Story about Amazon, Counterfeit Listings, and Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) Policies

Geoffrey A. Manne & Kristian Stout & Alec Stapp

Amazon is again accused of being a predatory pricer, once again the evidence and theory to support this is nonexistent. Shaoul Sussman's complicated argument that the use of grey market sellers to force higher prices throughout the economy, doesn't add up.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

September 12, 2019

What’s the Harm of Targeted Ads on Children’s Content Anyway?

Ben Sperry

The shift in oversight responsibility from parents to the FTC will likely lead to less-effective oversight, more difficult user interfaces, less children’s programming, and higher costs for everyone — all without obviously mitigating any harm in the first place.

September 10, 2019

The Digital Policy of the Next EU Commission: All roads Lead to Margrethe Vestager

Dirk Auer

If the EU wants to turn itself into a digital economy powerhouse, it will have to switch towards light-touch regulation that allows firms to experiment with disruptive services, flexible employment options, and novel monetization strategies.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

September 5, 2019

Kochland: An Inadvertent Paean to the Glories of the Free Market

Kristian Stout

Kochland is a quick read that presents a gripping account of one of America’s corporate success stories. Even those who hate the Koch brothers on account of politics would do well to learn from the model of entrepreneurial success that Kochland cannot help but describe in its pages.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

September 3, 2019

The District Court’s FTC v. Qualcomm Decision Rests on Impermissible Inferences and Should Be Reversed

Geoffrey A. Manne & Ben Sperry

Contrary to established Supreme Court precedent, the district court’s decision relies on mere inferences to establish anticompetitive effect. The decision, if it stands, would render a wide range of potentially procompetitive conduct presumptively illegal and thus harm consumer welfare.

Antitrust & Consumer Protection

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