FTCWatch
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April 29, 2025
Senate support grows for bill to beef up probes of agricultural consolidation
Montana Democrat Jon Tester, the one active farmer in the Senate last year, was defeated in the November 2024 election, but legislation he co-sponsored to investigate consolidation in a certain corner of the agricultural industry is alive and in an expanded form.
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April 29, 2025
Privacy Corner: Ireland courts tech companies at IAPP
The IDA Ireland was the only foreign government outreach organization this year at IAPP’s Global Privacy Summit in Washington, DC, courting tech companies to the Emerald Isle.
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April 29, 2025
Chrome forced sale ‘unprecedented,’ high risk, Google executive tells US court
Google’s top executive in charge of Chrome warned against the “unprecedented” forced sale of the browser, saying the product can’t be run independently because it relies heavily on Google for investments and a security infrastructure that no other company would have the incentive to provide.
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April 29, 2025
Instagram, Facebook founders’ rivalry spills into FTC monopolization trial
Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom delivered trial testimony accusing Meta Platforms’ Chief Executive and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg of “starving” Instagram of vital resources and decision-making based on “a lot of emotion” around which founder’s app was better, offering a boost to the Federal Trade Commission’s antitrust litigation seeking to break up the companies.
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April 29, 2025
FTC staff offered another round of deferred resignations, buyouts
Federal Trade Commission employees have been offered three potential ways to cut short their employment at the nation’s competition and consumer protection watchdog, according to an agency memo seen by MLex.
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April 29, 2025
Calendar
May 29 — The American Antitrust Institute is sponsoring its 26th Annual Policy Conference on “The State of the Antitrust Technocracy.” It will be held at the National Press Club in Washington, DC. For more information, go to: https://www.antitrustinstitute.org/event/26th-aai-annual-policy-conference/.
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April 29, 2025
Holyoak says privacy agenda focuses on kids as Congress renews push for bill
The Federal Trade Commission’s approach to privacy enforcement will focus on protecting children while not stifling innovation or going beyond its statutory authority, Commissioner Melissa Holyoak told an audience of privacy professionals.
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April 29, 2025
Neil Averitt commentary: The rebuttal case for simplicity
The chair’s showcase program at the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Spring Meeting had the provocative title of “Have We Been Doing It All Wrong?” It called for more sophisticated antitrust analysis, especially in innovation-heavy industries, as panelists explored ways to attain a more complex understanding of more dynamic competition models.
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April 29, 2025
FTC faces uncertainty over size, powers
The Federal Trade Commission now has three members but still faces challenges from the White House, in the courts and on Capitol Hill that could change the way it operates.
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April 29, 2025
Co-founder of AAI aims to ‘provide a bridge’ through fellowships
Three days after this year’s presidential inauguration, the New York Times reported that “The Justice Department has abruptly rescinded job offers made to dozens of recent law school graduates who were to be placed in entry-level positions in its antitrust” division, totaling 25.
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April 29, 2025
Clothing companies again ask FTC to revise rule on care labels
A trade association representing some of the country’s most recognizable apparel companies asked the Federal Trade Commission to revise a rule that requires care labels on clothing, while the head of a drycleaners association critiqued the group’s latest proposal.
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April 29, 2025
Uber sued by FTC over allegedly deceiving subscribers
Uber has been accused by the Federal Trade Commission of using deceptive billing and cancellation practices regarding its Uber One subscription service.
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April 29, 2025
Losses to text scams hit $470 million in 2024
The Federal Trade Commission released data showing that in 2024 consumers reported losing $470 million to scams that started with text messages. This is five times higher than what was reported in 2020, even though the number of reports declined.
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April 29, 2025
Illinois, Minnesota join lawsuit against GTCR-Surmodics deal
The Federal Trade Commission has filed an amended complaint that adds Illinois and Minnesota as plaintiffs in its lawsuit challenging GTCR BC Holdings’ $627 million acquisition of Surmodics.
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April 29, 2025
Healthcare staffing executive found guilty of antitrust conspiracy
The Department of Justice said a federal jury in Nevada has convicted healthcare staffing executive Eduardo “Eddie” Lopez for fixing the wages of home healthcare nurses in Las Vegas.
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April 29, 2025
Former Asphalt Specialists president gets prison time for rigging bids
Timothy Baugher, former president of Asphalt Specialists, was sentenced to six months in prison and ordered to pay a $20,000 fine for his role in a conspiracy to rig bids for asphalt paving services contracts in Michigan.
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April 29, 2025
People
Syme starts at DiCello Levitt after 13 years at DOJ’s Antitrust Division
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April 29, 2025
On The Shelf: The government’s unsung heroes
The late President Ronald Reagan famously (and erroneously) said the most dangerous words in the English language are: “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.” His sentiment was indicative of efforts to sow distrust among the public that has been a hallmark of American conservatism for decades.
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April 08, 2025
Spotify faces revival of royalty watchdog’s suit over streaming bundle
Spotify is back in New York federal court after an initial victory in its battle with the Mechanical Licensing Collective over an alleged royalty-dodging scheme involving hundreds of millions of dollars’ worth of payments to musicians.
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April 08, 2025
Wright drops defamation claims against accusers but battles sanctions, fees
Former Federal Trade Commissioner Joshua Wright may have dropped defamation claims against two former students and colleagues who accused him of sexual misconduct, but a legal fight over hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs continues in a Virginia court.
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April 08, 2025
Ferguson says advertiser boycott is concerted refusal to deal
Andrew Ferguson, the chairman of the Federal Trade Commission, said he’s concerned about advertisers wielding market power to potentially affect speech outcomes, and said it’s a classic antitrust violation.
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April 08, 2025
Ferguson tells 23andMe to keep privacy protections amid bankruptcy
Federal Trade Commission Chairman Andrew Ferguson issued a letter outlining how 23andMe must maintain its privacy protections amid its bankruptcy.
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April 08, 2025
Neil Averitt commentary: Reflections from the ABA sidelines
The new policies of the Trump administration loom heavily over the Washington legal community, but you wouldn’t know it from the presentations and hallway conversations at the American Bar Association’s Antitrust Spring Meeting.
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April 08, 2025
Children’s online safety legislation takes center stage while enforcement lags
Despite the flurry of action on federal legislation to protect children online, the Trump administration’s decisions impacting the Federal Trade Commission have stalled other initiatives to address the issue.
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April 08, 2025
Calendar
April 23-24 — The International Association of Privacy Professionals’ Global Privacy Summit 2025 will be held at the Marriott Marquis Hotel in Washington, DC. For more details, go to: https://iapp.org/conference/global-privacy-summit/.