FTC: Watch articles

Recent articles from FTC: Watch

Merger watch - vertical challenge.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2002... Conventional wisdom predicts that Republican administrations are adverse to challenging vertical mergers in federal court. But on June 24, a unanimous FTC authorized its staff to seek a preliminary injunction to block Cytyc Corp.'s proposed $420 million acquisition of Digene Corp., alleging...

Senate cautions DOJ on satellite merger.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2002... The Antitrust Division needs to think long and hard before approving the Echostar/DirectTV satellite merger that would reduce the number of competitors to just one in rural areas that are not served by cable TV companies, Senate Antitrust Subcommittee Chairman Herb Kohl (D-Wisc.) and Mike...

Commission rejects slotting fee guidelines.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2002... A unanimous FTC has formally denied a petition filed two years ago for guidelines on the legal use of slotting fees (payments by manufacturers for retail shelf space) in the grocery industry. The Independent Bakers Assoc., the Tortilla Industry Assoc., and the National Assoc. of Chewing Gum...

FTC opposes Ameritech class action settlement.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2002... Michael Erikson has filed a class action suit alleging that Ameritech breached contracts with its voice mail subscribers by charging them more for the service than promised. Ameritech has denied all allegations of liability and wrongdoing, contending that the usage charges were fully...

FTC Economics Chief on getting your deal through.(Brief Article)
July 1, 2002... It is critical that FTC and merging parties' economic experts meet early on in merger review processes to ensure meaningful dialogues, FTC Chief Economist David Scheffman advised when speaking on "Sources of Information and Evidence in Merger Investigations," at a joint New York Bar...