In line with the international competition best practices? - The new competition law in Brazil (Guest article)

By Diego Herrera Moraes, U.S. Federal Trade Commission*

Starting on May 29, 2012, the most substantive reform of Brazil’s antitrust enforcement since the current framework was established in 1994 will enter into force.(1) But is Law No. 12,529/11 (“the New Law”) in line with international competition best practices? Best answer: reforms have been achieved, but great challenges still lie ahead. Before any further conclusions, it is important to walk through the main changes introduced by the New Law.

Samuel Miller - Antitrust concerns from partial ownership interest acquisitions: New developments in the European Union and the United States

We are happy to recommend to our readers an article co-authored by a Berkeley Law professor – Samuel Miller - Antitrust Concerns from Partial Ownership Interest Acquisitions: New Developments in the European Union and the United States. The article focuses on recent developments in the European Union and the United States relating to antitrust issues arising from the acquisition of partial ownership interests in an entity. An important distinction exists in the treatment of partial ownership acquisitions between the European Union and the United States. While the European Commission (the "EC") does not (currently at least) have competence under its merger control rules to review partial ownership acquisitions that do not confer control on the purchaser, the U.S. authorities (and certain EU Member States) have broader jurisdiction.

Is Apple forcing customers to pay more for e-books? - Global developments in the alleged e-book price-fixing case (Article)

By Pola Karolczyk, Attorney at law, LL.M. candidate

European investigations 

On December 6, 2011 the European Commission announced that it opened formal proceedings to examine whether five major international publishers (Hachette Livre (Lagardère Publishing, France), Harper Collins (News Corp., USA), Simon & Schuster (CBS Corp., USA), Penguin (Pearson Group, United Kingdom) and Verlagsgruppe Georg von Holzbrinck (owner of inter alia Macmillan, Germany) have engaged in anti-competitive practices with regard to the sale of e-books in the European Union.

DOJ closes investigation into Google’s acquisition of Admeld Inc. (Article)

By Pola Karolczyk, Attorney at law, LL.M. candidate

On December 2, 2011 the DOJ announced its decision to close the investigation into Google’s acquisition of Admeld Inc. allowing Google to complete its $ 400 million merger. The DOJ’s investigation focused on the potential anticompetitive effects of the proposed transaction in the display advertising industry. This decision is significant for Google’s business because it allows it to strengthen its advertising branch, being the major source of Google’s revenue.