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Perspectives on Ticketmaster/Live Nation
Links to the Congressional testimony are available here (including from Luke Froeb), an informative article in the WSJ, and another at MSNBC quoting Boston University’s Keith Hylton on the possibility that the post-merger firm would force sellers to reduce fees and pass-on lower ticket prices to consumers.
Why the Supreme Court was Correct to Deny Cert in Rambus
As TOTM readers are likely to know, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in Rambus, a course of action I had argued was the appropriate response to the arguments set forth in the Commission petition. I recently expanded the blog post into a short essay which I’ve posted on SSRN. It will also be available in ... Why the Supreme Court was Correct to Deny Cert in Rambus
Hello Chairman Leibowitz; Goodbye Chairman Kovacic
Here’s the press release. Congratulations to Chairman-to-be Leibowitz. I also note that this marks the end of Chairman’s Kovacic’s reign at the Commission. On a personal note, I had the pleasure of working for the Chairman during my stint as the FTC Scholar in Residence and consider myself extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity. ... Hello Chairman Leibowitz; Goodbye Chairman Kovacic
Unquestionably Correct?
An anonymous reader reminds me of the FTC Statement from Commissioners Harbour, Leibowitz and Rosch (but not Chairman Kovacic, who was recused) making the case against certiorari in Linkline: “The holding of the Ninth Circuit is unquestionably correct, and indeed merely echoes what other courts of appeals have held on the narrow issue presented to ... Unquestionably Correct?
Linkline Decision is Unanimous
The opinion is available here. Yet another super-majority Roberts Court antitrust decision applying consensus economic theory. No more price squeeze claims. Alcoa is not overturned. The Court declares that the price-squeeze claim in the absence of a duty to deal can be handled jointly by a straightforward application of Trinko and Brooke Group to the ... Linkline Decision is Unanimous
The AIG Bailout
A draft of my new paper entitled The AIG Bailout is now up on SSRN. Here’s the abstract: On February 28, 2008, American International Group, Inc. (AIG), the largest insurance company in the United States, announced 2007 earnings of $6.20 billion or $2.39 per share. Its stock closed that day at $50.15 per share. Less ... The AIG Bailout
Competitive Resale Price Maintenance in the Absence of Free-Riding
I want to second Josh’s commendation of Ben Klein’s submission to the recent FTC Hearings on Resale Price Maintenance. Klein’s paper, which bears the same title as this post, is lucidly written (blissfully free of equations, Greek letters, etc.) and makes a point that, at this juncture in antitrust’s history, is absolutely crucial. In the ... Competitive Resale Price Maintenance in the Absence of Free-Riding
Cert Denied in Rambus
Hot off the press (HT: Antitrust Review). As TOTM readers will know, I think this is the correct result as I’ve argued here that the Supreme Court should indeed reject the Commission’s petition. I also believe the rejection is consistent with the Supreme Court’s antitrust case selection under Chief Justice Roberts in the sense that, ... Cert Denied in Rambus
DOJ AAG Designate Christine Varney on Section 2, Europe, Google & A Puzzling Statement About Error Costs
Predicting what antitrust enforcement regimes in the current economic environment is a tricky business. I’ve done my best here. One probably cannot think of a better source for such predictions than those from the soon-to-be AAG Christine Varney, who recently spoke at an American Antitrust Institute panel on Section 2 enforcement (you can hear the ... DOJ AAG Designate Christine Varney on Section 2, Europe, Google & A Puzzling Statement About Error Costs
Law and New Institutional Economics for Law Professors
Victor Fleischer and Phil Weiser are putting on a Law and New Institutional Economics workshop for law professors in June. The conference announcement is here. I believe Thom attended last year’s installment, and I will be on the program this year. Here are more details: New Institutional Economics (NIE) is an interdisciplinary methodology that draws ... Law and New Institutional Economics for Law Professors
Bittlingmayer and Hazlett on the Stimulus
George Bittlingmayer (University of Kansas) and my colleague Tom Hazlett look at the market response to the stimulus and find it none too enthusiastic: President Barack Obama’s “stimulus” plan invokes the 1930s fiscal strategy put forward by British economist John Maynard Keynes, who saw capitalism as pretty much spent. Having exhausted their store of innovative ... Bittlingmayer and Hazlett on the Stimulus
Some Reactions to the Obama Housing Plan
First, Peter Klein: I am bewildered. But, more than that, I am angry. I can’t count how many news accounts I’ve seen about the poor, struggling homeowners who can’t make the monthly mortgage payment, are about to be foreclosed, and risk losing the family home, yard, white picket fence, and piece of the American Dream. ... Some Reactions to the Obama Housing Plan
