The European Commission confirmed has inspected the premises of producers of Flexible Alternating Current Transmission Systems (FACTS). This equipment is used to increase the power transfer capability of electricity transmission networks. The EC is concerned about possible cartel activities. The specific parties involved have not been disclosed.
EC Investigating Flexible Alternating Current Transmission Systems Industry
February 3, 2010 – 5:05 pm
DOJ Settles West Virginia Newspaper Case
February 2, 2010 – 11:47 am
The Department of Justice recently agreed to settle a dispute with Charleston, WV newspaper companies to ensure the continued publication of independent competing papers as long as they are not financially failing.
Urethane MDL Plaintiffs Order to Produce Data
February 2, 2010 – 11:42 am
District of Kansas Magistrate Judge James O’Hara ordered the plaintiffs in the urethane multi-district litigation to produce data about their sales that had been requested by the defendants. The judge agreed with defendants that the information was necessary to allow the defendants to respond to the conspiracy allegations by showing that the plaintiffs own information supported the defense that market conditions rather than conspiracy triggered price increases.
FCC Seeks to Enhance TV Delivery Competition
February 2, 2010 – 11:33 am
The FCC recently announced that it will no longer tolerate cable TV system efforts to hinder competition by refusing to make local sports programing available to competitive TV providers. In the past, the FCC took the view that if the programming was distributed terrestrially rather than by satellite, the cable provider had no obligation to make it available to competitors. The new rule indicates that the FCC will more aggressively seek to compel access.
FTC Announces a Drop in Hart-Scott-Rodino Thresholds
February 2, 2010 – 11:28 am
The dollar amounts used to determine whether a merger or acquisition is subject to the mandatory pre-merger notification requirements has been raised regularly since the law was first implemented in the 1970s. For the first time, the Federal Trade Commission recently announced that the thresholds will be reduced. The decision is based on the view that the weak economy is likely to lead to more transactions with lower dollar amounts. Parties considering mergers or acquisitions should carefully review the new thresholds before proceeding.
Second Circuit Addresses Twombly Standard in Reviving Digital Music Conspiracy Suit
February 2, 2010 – 11:15 am
The Second Circuit reversed a district court’s dismissal of a case alleging that major record companies had conspired to increase the price of digital music distributed on CDs and over the Internet. The trial court had found the allegations of conspiracy insufficient under the Twombly standard. The Second Circuit reversed, explaining that “[t]he present complain succeeds where Twombly’s failed because the complaint alleges specific facts sufficient to plausible suggest that the parallel conduct alleged was the result of an agreement among the defendants.” The court explained that a plaintiff need not allege sufficient facts to exclude the possibility of “independent self-interested conduct” only enough to suggest an agreement. The plaintiff is not required to allege the specific time and place of the conspiracy or the particular persons involved. The court also rejected the argument that the Antitrust Division’s decision not to prosecute is relevant to the decision.
EC Investigates Shipping Industry Practice with Respect to Feeder Vessels
January 20, 2010 – 10:40 am
The European Commission is formally investigating a shipping industry practice know as the “Baltic Max Feeder” scheme in which European ship owners collectively agree to cover the costs of removing feeder vessels from service. The EC may believe that the scheme reduces capacity and thus increases charter rates for these ships.
DVD Application Antitrust Suit Dismissed for Lack of Injury
January 14, 2010 – 10:01 am
In RealNetworks Inc. et al. v. DVD Copy Control Association Inc. et al., Northern District of California Judge Marilyn Hall Patel tossed RealNetworks Inc.’s claims that several movie studios ran afoul of U.S. antitrust law by conspiring to block the company’s DVD-copying application in favor of their own product. The judge found that RealNetworks lacked antitrust standing because it had not demonstrated that it suffered any harm as a result of the alleged anti-competitive conduct. The court rejected RealNetwork’s claims that it suffered through the studios’ refusal to license the copying of the DVDs, noting that the company already conceded that it did not think it needed such a license before going to the market. The court also pointed out that even if RealNetworks would have been able to show injury, the complaint would have been dismissed anyway as improperly pled due to plaintiff’s failure to make a number of allegations that would be necessary to sustain the Sherman Act claims.
EC Examining Reverse Payment Settlements
January 13, 2010 – 11:05 am
The EC has requested information from to pharmaceutical companies, including copies of patent settlement agreements affecting the EU between originator and generic pharmaceutical companies from July 1, 2008, to December 31, 2009. The Commission is focused on situations in which the pioneer company a potential generic competitor in return for delaying the market entry of a generic drug.