The Misguided Assault on the Consumer Welfare Standard in the Age of Platform Markets

This paper discusses the recent scholarly and policy attack against the consumer welfare (“CW”) standard. It shows that the CW standard is not the explanatory factor for perceived low levels of antitrust enforcement in the US. The arguments made against the CW standard reflect a misunderstanding of its purpose and effects. Moreover, any deviation from the CW framework would likely weaken antitrust enforcement in the platform age.

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