Controversy brewing in global antitrust, with some serious developments gearing up to bring us plenty to discuss for year’s end. Landmark cases may shake up the landscape in Europe for major tech industries, while the still incomplete SCOTUS awaits with a full docket for a (possibly) game-changing election, and the FTC tackles the complexity of a (possibly criminal) new business format.
Robert Connolly (Cartel Capers)
(Competition Law Blog)
On Thursday 20 October, Advocate General Wahl (AG Wahl) issued his long-awaited opinion in the Intel case. This is the case that in 2009 led to fines of over €1 billion being imposed on Intel in respect of rebates and other “naked restrictions” which the European Commission found had been intended to exclude competition by Intel’s rival, AMD…
(Norton Rose Fulbright)
Sascha Schubert (Competition Law blog)
Jarod Bona (Antitrust Lawyer blog)
On 19 October 2016, the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) issued an important judgment concerning the German law on fixing prices of retail prescription drugs.
The Canadian franchise industry constitutes an important sector of the Canadian economy. The industry employs one in every 35 Canadian, generates approximately CDN$68 billion in revenues, and covers a wide variety of businesses (60% of franchisees are in non-food sectors and industries.)
About two years ago, I saw a video on Facebook about a Kickstarter campaign for the Coolest cooler. I thought it was a joke. It was a cooler with a blender and a Bluetooth speaker, plus giant wheels, built in bottle opener and USB charger.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Supreme Court denied review of a handful of petitions in antitrust cases. Since that time, new petitions for certiorari have been filed in competition law cases with the hope that the High Court will add them to its docket.
Jeffrey May (Antitrust Connect)
Crowdfunding is the use of online platforms to fund a project or cause by raising money from a large number of people. As part of its FinTech series, the FTC will take a closer look at crowdfunding during a half-day forum today, October 26.
Colleen Tressler (FTC)
A recent EU merger notification which might have gone under the radar is Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of LinkedIn. The deal was notified to the European Commission on 14 October 2016 and the provisional deadline for a decision is 22 November. Microsoft announced in June 2016 its intention to acquire LinkedIn for USD 26 billion.
Chantal Lavoie (Lavoie Law)
The big news today is the release of AG Wahl’s opinion in Intel. The Advocate General proposes to set aside the first instance judgment in the case and to refer the case back to the General Court.
Pablo Ibanez Colomo (Chillin’ Competition)