Monopolization

Magazine Wholesaler’s Collusion Case Felled By Twombly

Judge Paul Crotty of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York dismissed with prejudice an antitrust suit brought by bankrupt magazine wholesaler Anderson News LLC against a host of single-issue magazine publishers. Crotty ruled that Anderson's allegations of a broad industry-wide conspiracy did not meet the plausibility standards set forth in Bell Atlantic Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544 (2007),...

Court Finds Microsoft’s Apple Defense Half Baked

A federal court has denied Microsoft’s request to dismiss a claim of monopolizing a single-brand aftermarket, rejecting Microsoft’s attempt to use an argument that Apple used to dismiss a similar aftermarket claim.  We examined Microsoft’s motion in a previous post. Judge Elizabeth D. Laporte of the Northern District of California has denied in part and granted in part Microsoft’s motion to dismiss the...

Financial Accounting Standards Board Sued Over Rights To Commenter’s Thoughts

A small economics and software company is charging the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) – the organization that sets accounting standards for every public company in the country – with attempting to misappropriate its intellectual property in the standard setting process. Silicon Economics, Inc. (SEI) has filed a complaint in federal court in the Northern District of California that charges that FASB...

Merger Of NYC Health Insurance Giants Clears Major Hurdle

Health care giants Group Health Inc. ("GHI") and HIP Foundation Inc. ("HIP") have cleared the latest legal obstacle to their merger. On May 12, 2010, U.S. Judge Richard J. Sullivan of the Southern District of New York dismissed the City of New York's antitrust suit attempting to unravel the merger of GHI and HIP.  Judge Sullivan's decision added a decisive, albeit not final, nail to the coffin of the City's...

Aerotec Alleges Honeywell Blocks It From Leaving For Jet Plane Repairs

Aerotec International Inc. is alleging Honeywell International Inc. is using its market power to eliminate competition for jet airplane auxiliary power unit repairs in an antirust complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona. The dispute involves small gas turbine engines called auxiliary power units, or “APUs,” that provide power for auxiliary functions on jet airplanes including...

Broadcom Disparages Monopolization By Disparagement Claim As Just Words

Sticks and stones may break your bones, but disparagement will hardly ever monopolize your market, is the message of Broadcom Corporation’s motion to dismiss a "monopolization-by-disparagement" case brought by its competitor Emulex Corporation.

The case, Emulex Corp. et al. v. Broadcom Corp. et al., No. SACV 09-1310 JVS (ANx), centers on statements Broadcom allegedly made during a 2009 attempt at a hostile takeover...

Big Companies Experiencing The Joys And Heartaches Of The Antitrust Underdog

Can antitrust law protect big companies as well as small companies and consumers? An increasing number of large companies are discovering – as plaintiffs – that the answer is yes. Many practitioners ascribe to the following paradigm: Antitrust enforcement is an anathema to large companies.  They point to the fact that big companies, like Microsoft, AT&T and Verizon, have repeatedly fought private plaintiffs...

MP3 Player Plaintiffs Go For Third Bite At The Apple

Plaintiffs in The Apple iPod iTunes Anti-Trust Litigation – a putative class action accusing Apple of anti-competitive conduct in the portable MP3 player market – are hoping the third time’s the charm as they again seek to convince the court they have a viable claim. The plaintiffs have filed an amended complaint after the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California twice rejected claims that...

Focus On Monsanto Highlights Growing DOJ Scrutiny Of Dominant Firms

It is well known in the antitrust community that the Justice Department is searching for cases to bring against dominant firms that have violated the antitrust laws.  One such firm may be Monsanto.  In fact, the prices of patented seeds sold by agribusiness giant Monsanto, which make up a majority of the seed market for some staple crops, have roughly doubled in the past decade, leading to new scrutiny by the...

Chase Rips Up Credit Card Arbitration Clauses To Settle Class Action

JPMorgan Chase bank, one of the world’s largest issuers of credit cards, has announced that it will abandon the controversial practice of mandatory arbitration of cardholder disputes.  The move is part of a settlement reached between Chase and consumers in an antitrust class action challenging the use of such clauses. Like many card issuers, Chase includes language in its cardholders’ contracts that requires...