FTC: Watch articles from June 2002

FTC: Watch archives from June 2002

Merger watch: getting to yes.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... Amgen Inc.'s proposed acquisition of Immunex Corp. is expected to clear FTC review in July as the firms go through the process of satisfying agency antitrust concerns about competition for two rheumatoid arthritis drugs, including an Immunex...

Consummated medical merger attracts scrutiny.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The FTC is reviewing Genzyme Corp.'s September 2001 acquisition of Novazyme Pharmaceuticals Inc. Although the deal was worth $137.5 million, it did not require pre-merger notification under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Act because the size-of-person...

Pennzoil/Shell.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The FTC asked motor oil maker Pennzoil-Quaker State Co. for more information about its $1.8 billion acquisition by Royal Dutch/Shell. The Second Request involves base oil (refined oil base for making lubricants and car motor oil).Royal...

Preemptive strike against telescope merger.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The FTC Commission authorized the staff to seek a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction in federal district court to block any attempt by number one telescope maker Meade Instruments Corp. buy number two Celestron...

Bayer/Aventis deal wins FTC, Canadian OK with divestitures in 4 U.S. & Canadian markets.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... Antitrust enforcers in the U.S. and Canada have cooperated to ensure consistent remedies in German drug giant Bayer's $6.2 billion acquisition of France's Aventis subsidiary, Aventis CropScience Holdings. To satisfy the FTC, Bayer will...

Agencies' antitrust market division deal kaput.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The Justice Department and the FTC have abandoned their antitrust market division agreement announced on March 5. But it wasn't easy. The Justice Dept. dispatched a press release announcing its decision at 6:59pm Monday, May 20, about the...

Judge Jackson slashes private fees in First Databank-Hearst case.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... U.S. District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson has declined to award plaintiff attorneys' fees the $5,115,000 they requested in In re: First Databank Antitrust Litigation, 1:01CV00870, instead ordering only $2,400,000 based on the determination...

Hawking asks FTC to halt sale of allegedly "repackaged" book.(Stephen Hawking)(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... Reaching back to FTC book cases in the 1950's, Cambridge University Prof. Stephen Hawking has asked the FTC to step in to block distribution of book which he alleges is an unauthorized repacking of earlier material that will deceive consumers...

Legislation regulates, protects standard setting activities.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... A new House bill would extend antitrust protections under the National Cooperative Research &Production Act of 1993 (NCRPA)to standards development organizations (SDOs).The NCRPA was originally written to provide antitrust protection to...

Beales: accurate domain name database is essential.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... Law enforcers fighting Internet fraud rely on the Whois registration database for accurate information about Web site operators, but inaccurate names, addresses, and phone numbers in that database have thwarted numerous FTC and international...

Proposed user fees for "Do-Not-Call" registry.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The FTC is considering funding the estimated $3 to $5 million annual cost of a national "Do-Not-Call" registry with telemarketer user fees. In January, the FTC published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to establish the registry, to be...

FTC report: Cigarette makers paying more to plug product.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... Cigarette sales in 2000 increased 0.5% from 1999, while advertising and promotional expenditures increased 16.2%, mostly for discount coupons and newspaper advertising according to the FTC's annual report on cigarette sales and advertising.....

Dow wants generic textile fiber name "lastol".(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... Dow Chemical Company has petitioned the FTC to establish a new generic fiber subclass name and definition for its new cross-linked elastic fiber called "CEF." Dow wants the FTC to amend Rule 7 of the Textile Fiber Products Identification Act...

When Alaskan soapstone carvings are not what they appear.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... If you like Alaskan Native art, the FTC thinks you should have the real thing. The FTC joined with the Alaska State Council on the Arts, the Indian Arts and Craft Board (IACB)and the Alaska Attorney General's Office to distribute more than...

Japanese & German individuals charged in carbon cathode block price fixing conspiracy.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... A federal grand jury in New Jersey indicted a Japanese and a German executive for conspiring to fix prices for carbon cathode block, a carbon product that resists heat and chemical reaction. The indictment names Nippon Electrode Company's...

Jury indicts British stamp auction bid-riggers.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The U.S. District Court in Manhattan indicted two British stamp dealers and a British stamp company for conspiring to rig bids while selling stamps at U.S. public auctions from the early 1980s until at least June 1997. The Justice Dept....

Fourth case from investigation into Atlanta's water treatment industry.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The Antitrust Division has charged a Texas water and wastewater treatment equipment supply company with conspiring to commit mail and wire fraud against one of its customers in a kickback scheme. The Division filed the one-count felony...

FTC OK's ChevronTexaco divestiture.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... The Commission has approved ChevronTexaco Corp.'s March 8 application to divest its interest in the Discovery Natural Gas System to Duke Energy Field Services LP. REFERENCE: May 29 FTC press release Docket No. C-4023 Contact: Daniel P....

That's enough, Cupcake.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... At the FTC's request, U.S. District Judge Berle M. Schiller imposed a permanent injunction against an Internet "mouse trap" operator who used more than 5,500 copycat Web addresses to divert Internet surfers from mainstream sites for kids, teens...

Marketing company pays $90,000 to settle "trial offer" charges.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... A software marketing company and its president will pay a $90,000 civil penalty to resolve FTC allegations that they misled consumers through their telemarketers by misrepresenting a 30-day trial offer for software as "no risk." Au...

Calendar.(Brief Article)
June 3, 2002... June 5 -Merger Investigation Best Practices Workshop General Session with Michael G. Cowie, Senior Litigation Counsel; D. Bruce Hoffman, Associate Director for Regions; Rhett R. Krulla, Deputy Assistant Director, Mergers II; John P Wiegand....