antitrust

Google could face the maximum fine for allegedly obstructing a Korean investigation of its business practices, the head of the Korean Fair Trade Commission told that country's fourth-largest newspaper.

That antitrust official, Kim Dong-soo, made the comments in a recent interview with the paper, Hankook Ilbo (note: original article is in Korean), according to CNET's independent translation of the article. The paper reported that when the agency raided Google Korea's office in September, the company obstructed the investigation by deleting key files from PCs and asking its employees to telecommute from home, which had the effect of … Read more

The Internet's most popular destinations, including eBay, Google, Facebook, and Twitter, seem to view Hollywood-backed copyright legislation as an existential threat.

It was Google co-founder Sergey Brin who warned that the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act "would put us on a par with the most oppressive nations in the world." Craigslist founder Craig Newmark, Twitter co-founders Jack Dorsey and Biz Stone, and LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman argue that the bills give the Feds unacceptable "power to censor the Web."

But these companies have yet to roll out the heavy artillery.

When … Read more

It may be a measure of Google's dominance that some of the most important events for the company next year will likely take place in courtrooms and government offices.

The Web giant is under investigation both domestically and abroad for allegedly abusing its powerful position as the leader in Internet search. And rivals are suing Google and its partners as the company expands into markets where they're already competing.

So even as Google works to improve its search engine and bolster emerging businesses such as its Google+ social network, it will be worth keeping tabs on the regulators, … Read more

Two prominent members of the Senate antitrust subcommittee are urging federal regulators to investigate whether Google unfairly promotes its own properties in search results.

Committee Chairman Herb Kohl (D-Wis.) and Mike Lee (R-Utah) sent a five-page letter (PDF) today to Federal Trade Commission Chairman Jonathan Leibowitz calling for "serious scrutiny" of Google's business practices.

"We believe these allegations regarding Google's search engine practices raise important competition issues," wrote Kohl and Lee, whose committee is already investigating whether Google abuses its power in online search. "We are committed to ensuring that consumers benefit from … Read more

A federal judge declared a mistrial in Novell's antitrust suit against Microsoft after jurors told the court they could not reach a verdict.

Novell filed the case in 2004, alleging that Microsoft, while developing Windows 95, promised to support Novell's WordPerfect and Quattro Pro products, but held back key technical information required to make them compatible with Windows 95. Novell sought more than $1 billion in damages as a result of Microsoft's alleged anticompetitive behavior.

The jury trial, which lasted two months, saw Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates travel to the Salt Lake City courtroom to testify. According … Read more

The European Commission will issue a lengthy Statement of Objections, the equivalent of a preliminary finding, against Google for abusing its market dominance, according to a report in the Financial Times.

The report, which cited "sources close to the case," said that the statement of objections would run more than 400 pages in order to cover the complexity of the case as well as "the number of complainants." And the commission will issue the Statement of Objections, which is said to lay out details of Google's alleged abuses, early next year.

Google did not immediately … Read more

commentary In a surprising and disturbing break with long-standing agency practice, the FCC on Tuesday released a draft report on the proposed merger between AT&T and T-Mobile prepared by its staff--days after the parties withdrew their application with the agency.

The move could fuel calls for serious reform of the agency's increasingly free-wheeling behavior.

The two companies withdrew their application on Thanksgiving, following word that FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski planned to ask the other commissioners to refer the merger to an administrative judge for a hearing.

That step, agency officials made clear, signaled the chairman's belief … Read more

AT&T's foundering bid to acquire T-Mobile could hinge on a last-minute deal with a second-tier wireless operator, Leap Wireless, to try to allay regulators' antitrust concerns.

That's according to a New York Times report last night, which said AT&T is "knee deep" in talks that would mean both T-Mobile customers and wireless spectrum would be sold to Leap.

Leap is one of a handful of players that might be interested in T-Mobile assets, my colleague Maggie Reardon reports in her FAQ about AT&T's troubles trying to buy T-Mobile. Leap … Read more

South Korea's antitrust watchdog has fined six LCD makers $176 million for conspiring to artificially inflate prices for flat-screen monitors.

Samsung Electronics and LG Display were among the companies that colluded from 2001 to 2006 to control the prices of panels for TVs and personal computers, the Fair Trade Commission said. The cartel, which also includes AU Optronics, Chimei Innolux, Chunghwa Picture Tubes, and HannStar Display, held 200 secret meetings to discuss cutting or suspending production to prevent prices from declining, the FTC said.

"They colluded on minimum prices of panels, pricing policies on each product type, timing … Read more