Antitrust Group

Payments News Update - June 24, 2022

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: UK Watchdog to Review Post-Brexit Visa and Mastercard Fees Reuters – June 21, 2022

Britain's payment systems regulator (PSR) will conduct two market reviews of card fees charged by Visa and Mastercard, the U.S. companies that account for 99% of debit and credit card payments in the UK. The PSR's announcement on Tuesday follows heavy pressure from lawmakers to launch...

The Antitrust Week In Review

Here are some of the developments in antitrust news this past week that we found interesting and are following.   Facebook owner Meta makes antitrust commitments over online advertising.  France's anti-trust watchdog body said that it had approved commitments made by Facebook owner Meta Platforms regarding the French online advertising sector. Meta has committed to giving access over a five-year period to...

Cydia is Getting a Chance to Prove its App Store Antitrust Claims Against Apple

By David Golden Cydia, the alternative iOS app store, has been given the chance to seek discovery to prove its antitrust claims against Apple. On May 26, 2022, Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California denied Apple’s motion to dismiss the antitrust claims of SaurikIT, the developer of Cydia. SaurikIT alleges that Apple violated Sections 1 and 2 of the...

The Antitrust Week In Review

Here are some of the developments in antitrust news this past week that we found interesting and are following.   U.S. sets high bar to settle Facebook antitrust suit -FTC chair.  U.S. Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan, who promised tougher antitrust enforcement, said she would not rule out a settlement with Meta's Facebook, which the agency sued in 2020, but indicated there was a high bar for any...

Payments News Update - June 10, 2022

Legal and Regulatory Developments SPOTLIGHT: Lawmakers Seek to Push Antitrust, Privacy Bills as Big Tech Revamps Lobbying Efforts PYMNTS – June 10, 2022 Google, Meta, Amazon and Apple have been living for the last years with the threat of new legislation in the U.S. that could limit their ability to operate their platforms, and especially during the last 18 months since President Joe Biden took office. But...

Increased Enforcement Shows Firms Need to Plug Antitrust and Privacy Law Requirements Into Their Digital Algorithms

The recent announcement by the Federal Trade Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice of a settlement with Twitter that would impose $150 million in penalties and robust compliance measures is merely the most recent warning to firms using algorithmic tools that abuses are being subjected to increased enforcement efforts under antitrust and privacy laws.  Just under three years after the FTC’s

The Antitrust Week In Review

Here are some of the developments in antitrust news this past week that we found interesting and are following.

EU acted like a fishing trawler in antitrust data searches, Meta lawyer says. Meta Platforms Inc. compared searches by EU antitrust regulators to a fishing super trawler as watchdogs investigate the owner of Facebook's data and online marketplace. Meta says it has already handed over more than a million...

Court Green Lights Ohio AG’s Case to Declare Google a “Common Carrier”

Is Google Search a “common carrier” under Ohio law that is barred from prioritizing Google’s own products? Under a state court ruling last week, the answer to that question has gotten closer to yes. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) is suing to restrain Google from prioritizing Google products in its search engine results.  If successful, the lawsuit—which has now survived a motion to dismiss—could...

U.S. Adoption of a Central Bank Digital Currency Could Revitalize Payments Markets With Competition

The ailing U.S. payments markets could get a shot of much-needed competition if the U.S. government follows through on proposals to adopt a Central Bank Digital Currency (“CBDC”)—which would be issued by the Federal Reserve. The competitive failings of U.S. payments markets were highlighted a few weeks ago at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on interchange or “swipe fees,” the fees that merchants pay...