Antitrust Bulletin articles from December 2002

Antitrust Bulletin archives from December 2002

Problems with presumptions: a case study of the "structural presumption" of anticompetitiveness.
December 22, 2002... Presumptions are among the most commonly misunderstood and misapplied concepts in the field of evidence. While the term "presumption" is a technical rule of evidence with specific conditions and consequences, it is often used as a synonym for...

On the inevitable arbitrariness of market definitions.
December 22, 2002... Traditionally, economists, antitrust enforcement officials, and judges have used market-oriented approaches to predict the competitive impact of horizontal mergers and acquisitions--i.e., have based such predictions primarily (indeed, virtually...

Free riding on hot wheels.
December 22, 2002... When warehouse clubs started making inroads into its market, Toys "R" Us (TRU) responded with a policy designed to limit the clubs' access to certain toys. The FTC successfully challenged the policy, arguing that TRU had coordinated a...

Household switching behavior at depository institutions: evidence from survey data.
December 22, 2002... I. Introduction Because customer substitution across products and services influences market competition, an understanding of household relationships to deposit account providers is important in guiding bank merger policy. This study looks...

Platform externalities and the antitrust case against Microsoft.
December 22, 2002... I. Introduction In the ongoing debate between expert witnesses in the Microsoft case, each side has recently had an opportunity to articulate its very different views. The essence of the pro-Microsoft position of Evan, Nichols and...

A short-run welfare analysis of FTC antitrust oversight of patent litigation settlements under the Hatch-Waxman Act.
December 22, 2002... I. Introduction In general, it is difficult for a patent holder to secure a legal right to enjoin entry of an allegedly infringing product pending disposition of the infringement action. This is because the harm is rare that cannot be...

Antitrust policy and hospital mergers: recommendations for a new approach.
December 22, 2002... I. Introduction During the 1990s, there were over 900 hospital mergers and acquisitions, many involving hospitals in the same metropolitan areas. (1) These transactions consolidated the hospital industry, dramatically concentrating the...

Competition and deregulation: a review of Irish experience.
December 22, 2002... I. Introduction During the past decade successive governments introduced measures to increase competition in the Irish economy. This began with the passage of the 1991 Competition Act, followed 5 years later by legislation that introduced...

The Review of the EC Merger Regulation, with Evidence.(Book Review)
December 22, 2002... House of Lords Select Committee on the European Union London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office, House of Lords, Session 2001-02, 32d Report, HL Paper 165 (2002), 254 pp., 21.50 [pounds sterling]. Reviewed by Charles Lister, Covington &...