Antitrust Lawyer Blog

On March 5, 2014, the FTC announced that it has stepped up its enforcement efforts of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. According to FTC’s press release, while its debt collection efforts in the past have focused on research and consumer education, the Commission has focused on law enforcement efforts in recent years, especially after…

On February 27, China’s Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”) announced that it cleared 207 merger review cases in the administrative year of 2013, an increase of 26% over the numbers in 2012. During the same time period, the number of merger filings increased by 8%, while the number of accepted cases increased by 12.8%, to 212.…

On February 26, the Director of the Anti-Monopoly Bureau at the Chinese Ministry of Commerce (“MOFCOM”), Ming Shang, said in a press release that MOFCOM will focus on anti-monopoly legislation this year. Shang said one task facing MOFCOM would be the formulation of support measures to the “Interim Rule Regarding the Applicable Standards of Simple…

On February 26, 2014, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) cleared Samsung with no penalty of an accusation made by rival Apple that it has abused its dominance, according a commission press release. Apple had alleged that Samsung’s prolific litigation against Apple over patents constituted an abuse of dominance. But the KFTC said Samsung’s lawsuits did…

On February 19, 2014, the FTC settled with several companies and individuals, banning them from selling business, “mystery shopper” and “work-at-home scams,” in addition to surrendering their assets to the FTC. These scams seek to trick customers to sign-up for “work-at-home” and “mystery shopper” schemes with an upfront fee, and then charging the members a…

On February 19, 2014, the Utah ready-made soft pretzel maker, Sparky’s Pretzel, filed an antitrust complaint against Utah Pretzel and Valley Fair Mall, asserting that the two defendants are colluding to keep it out of the northern Utah ready-made pretzel market. According to Sparky’s Pretzel, its long-running tenancy in Valley Fair Mall, beginning in 2004,…

On February 19,2014, the Federal Commercial Court of Moscow upheld the fine given by the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS) on the Velikolysk meat plant for its part in a cartel of large meat packers that colluded to raise prices on a government acquisition of meat products. The FAS, in a press release, have also confirmed…

On February 19, 2014, the Japan Fair Trade Commission (“JFTC”) issued a warning to Shigakogen Sakudou Kyoukai, the association of ski lift operators in the Shiga highlands area, over potential violations of regulations prohibiting substantial restraint of competition. According to the JFTC, the association issued restricted special lift tickets to members of a particular ski…

On February 18, 2014, Russia’s competition authority, the Federal Antimonopoly Service (“FAS”), issued warnings to two business leaders in the oil industry after their comments about a possible increase in the price of petrol. Gennady Shmal, the president of the Oil and Gas Industrialists Union, and Konstantin Simonov, the CEO of the National Energy Security…

On February 18, 2014, U.S. District Judge Jane J. Boyle granted a motion by U.S. hotel chains and online travel agencies to dismiss without prejudice an antitrust case alleging consumers paid inflated prices on hotel rooms booked online. Judge Boyle believed there to be two main arguments from the plaintiffs:  first, defendants conspired to restrain competition in…