Department of Justice
Justice Department Requires Structural Relief to Resolve Antitrust Concerns in Nexstar’s Merger with Tribune
The Department of Justice will require Nexstar Media Group and Tribune Media Company to divest broadcast television stations in thirteen markets as a condition of resolving a challenge to the proposed $6.4 billion merger between Nexstar and Tribune. The Justice Department’s Antitrust Division, along with the offices of three state Attorneys General, filed a civil antitrust lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to block the proposed merger.
Justice Department Settles with T-Mobile and Sprint in Their Proposed Merger by Requiring a Package of Divestitures to Dish
The Department of Justice announced that it and the Attorneys General for five states reached a settlement with T-Mobile and Sprint regarding their proposed merger. The settlement requires a substantial divestiture package in order to enable a viable facilities-based competitor to enter the market. Further, the settlement will facilitate the expeditious deployment of multiple high-quality 5G networks for the benefit of American consumers and entrepreneurs.
Justice Department Reviewing the Practices of Market-Leading Online Platforms
The Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division is reviewing whether and how market-leading online platforms have achieved market power and are engaging in practices that have reduced competition, stifled innovation, or otherwise harmed consumers. The Department’s review will consider the widespread concerns that consumers, businesses, and entrepreneurs have expressed about search, social media, and some retail services online.
Justice Department Reaches Settlement with Five Additional Broadcast Television Companies, Including One National Sales Representative Firm, In Ongoing Information Sharing Investigation
The Department of Justice has reached settlements with CBS, Cox, EW Scripps, Fox, and TEGNA Inc. to resolve a Department lawsuit brought as part of its ongoing investigation into exchanges of competitively sensitive information in the broadcast television industry. All five companies are alleged to have engaged in unlawful information sharing among their owned broadcast television stations. Cox also owns Cox Reps, one of two large “Rep Firms” in the industry that assist broadcast stations in sales to national advertisers.
“…And Justice for All”: Antitrust Enforcement and Digital Gatekeepers
e digital economy is a fact of life, but it is not all things to all people. There has been robust public discussion about whether the broader economy, undoubtedly transformed by digital technologies, is working well for everyone. While some commenters have tried to dispatch the antitrust laws to address these problems, I do not believe the antitrust laws are bent towards values other than competition. Therefore, the right question is whether a defined market is competitive. That is the province of the antitrust laws.... As we think about antitrust enforcement in the digital eco
Man Sentenced for Threatening to Murder Family of FCC Chairman
A California man was sentenced to more than one and a half years in prison for threatening to kill the family of Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai. On or about Dec 19 and 20, 2017, Markara Man, 33, of Norwalk (CA), sent three emails to Chairman Pai’s email accounts. The first email accused Chairman Pai of being responsible for a child who allegedly had committed suicide because of the repeal of net neutrality regulations. The second email listed three locations in or around Arlington (VA) and threatened to kill the Chairman’s family members.