Antitrust

The consumer welfare standard, which maximizes consumer benefits instead of protecting individual competitors in the market, has been the north star of antitrust policy for over four decades. Antitrust law under the consumer welfare standard is primarily focused benefiting consumers and strengthening the competitive process, not to protect companies from being outperformed by other firms. This objective, rule-of-law approach has protected American innovation and brought consistency to antitrust enforcement. 

The left – and unfortunately some on the right – want to nullify the consumer welfare standard in favor of a more activist, interventionist approach to antitrust enforcement. Their ultimate goal is to use antitrust law to address unrelated social goals and “break up” big companies. Overzealous regulators would target large companies no matter how much they improve American lives or compete fairly with other firms. This would have a chilling effect on free enterprise, crush American innovation, and give activist bureaucrats license to fundamentally reshape the American economy. OCC opposes any and all efforts to weaken or overturn the consumer welfare standard, and stands firm against attempts to use antitrust law to reshape the economy. 

We will also oppose proposals such as aggressive merger prohibitions, inverting the burden of proof, allowing collusion and antitrust exemptions for politically favored firms, and politicizing antitrust enforcement decision-making more generally. Arbitrary or overly broad antitrust enforcement will impede economic recovery and risks job losses—something we should not exacerbate as the nation recovers from economic hardships and adapts to evolving market dynamics and changing consumer needs resulting from the global pandemic.

Antitrust

The European Commission Has Likely Killed an American Company Regardless of iRobot Decision

By: Lawson Faulkner The European Union’s top antitrust watchdog has signaled its intention to block a merger between Amazon and iRobot, maker of the Roomba vacuum cleaner, following initial reports of an imminent approval by EU regulators. Fearing Amazon’s domination over the digital retail market, the European…

Antitrust

Biden Administration Provides Hypocritical Guidance About Their Approach To “Enforcing” Antitrust Laws

Two weeks ago, Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan testified to Congress that the agency “only bring[s] cases when the facts before us lead us to believe that there is a law violation under the existing laws.” This week, Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice’s…

Antitrust

FTC Chair Khan Doubles Down on Use of Unethical Tactics To File Another Politically Motivated Lawsuit 

Since Lina Khan was confirmed as Chair of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in a bait-and-switch operation, she has repeatedly pummeled American companies for the sin of success. Khan continued this crusade this week with a new lawsuit against Amazon, accusing the company of making it overly burdensome for users…

Antitrust

Ticketmaster’s All-In Pricing Commitment Proves That The Market Does Not Need Government To Solve Its Problems

Without any need for legislation or government regulation, a host of private companies, including Ticketmaster and Airbnb, have unilaterally decided to provide consumers with upfront, all-in prices, to address rising concerns over the disclosure of fees. These cross-company measures prove that businesses do not need government interference or…

Antitrust

Klobuchar’s JCPA Clears Senate Judiciary, But Senator Mike Lee Recognizes That “It Makes No Sense”

Here we go again. For the past few years, Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) has relentlessly pressured Congress to pass her many progressive pet projects. No matter how much Congress and American voters reject these bills, she continues to waste time pushing her problematic and misguided proposals.

Antitrust

House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Investigates FTC Chair Khan’s Ethical Failings

On June 1, House Committee on Oversight and Accountability Chairman James Comer (R-Ky.) sent a letter requesting a broad swath of documents from Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Chair Lina Khan. This investigation will evaluate the allegations of recently resigned FTC Commissioner Christine Wilson. In her Wall Street Journal op-ed detailing the reasons she…

Antitrust

Remote Worker Lina Khan Sends Staff to Europe to Undermine American Companies and Consumers

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) Antitrust Division have officially shipped personnel to Brussels to provide assistance to the European Union in implementing the Digital Markets Act (DMA). This marks the beginning of formal collusion between the FTC/DOJ and European bureaucrats to undermine American companies via…