Blog o’ Blogs April

The winds of change blow through the world of Antitrust these days, with daunting challenges posed by the increasing importance of Technology and Telecommunications, both as a uniquely complex sector of the economy… and also as a Great Connector, blurring political and physical boundaries. Reactions across the world, from companies and authorities, are varied and downright exciting examples of a changing body of legal concepts and applications at work. With authorities attacking previously minor problems and new jurisdictions joining (and adding to) the wider discussion around antitrust, there may yet be some twists and turns to this tale…

Can Antitrust Law Save Innovative Ideas and Freedom of Speech?
There was once a time when people were worried that government would suppress speech, ideas, and innovation. The government still does this, of course. But it seems like there is less worry about it. In many ways, the government doesn’t have as much power as it used to have. That is, in part, because of our connectedness…
Jarod Bona (The Antitrust Attorney)

The illiberal vision of neo-Brandeisian antitrust
The urge to treat antitrust as a legal Swiss Army knife capable of correcting all manner of social and economic ills is apparently difficult for some to resist. Conflating size with market power, and market power with political power, many recent calls for regulation of industry — and the tech industry in particular — are framed in antitrust terms…
Geoffrey Manne (Truth on the Market)