SEPTEMBER 2018
The FTC has begun its Hearings
on Competition and Consumer Protection with a full-day session today co-sponsored by and held at the Georgetown
University Law Center. The event is the
first in a series of hearings examining whether broad-based changes in the
economy, evolving business practices, new technologies, or international
developments might require the Commission to adjust its competition and
consumer protection enforcement priorities.
The series of public hearings, in conjunction with the public comment
process, will provide the FTC with a diverse range of viewpoints intended to
stimulate evaluation of key enforcement and policy issues. The agency has postponed a second session
originally scheduled for tomorrow due to potential weather-related disruptions,
and will announce a new date. The Commission has announced the second hearing, a full-day event on September 21 at the FTC’s
Constitution Center facilities in Washington, D.C. Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz will deliver
an opening address on the state of competition in the United States, and former
FTC Chairman William E. Kovacic will deliver remarks on the evolution of U.S.
antitrust law. Moderated panel
discussions will address the state of U.S. antitrust law as well as monopsony
power. The FTC will hold additional sessions throughout the fall
and early winter, some yet to be announced.
On October 15-17 at George
Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, topics will include: identification
and analysis of collusive, exclusionary, and predatory conduct by digital and technology-based
platform businesses; antitrust framework for evaluating acquisitions of
potential or nascent competitors in digital marketplaces; and antitrust
evaluation of labor markets. On October 23-24 at the FTC’s
Constitution Center, the topic will be innovation and intellectual property
policy. On November 6-7 at American University Washington College
of Law, the topic will be privacy, big data, and competition. On November
13-14 at Howard University School of Law, the topic will be
algorithms, artificial intelligence, and predictive analytics.
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A Federal judge granted the FTC’s request for a preliminary injunction to temporarily
block the proposed merger of Tronox Limited and Cristal, pending the outcome of
administrative litigation before the FTC. The companies are top suppliers in the United
States and Canada of chloride process titanium dioxide (TiO2), a white pigment
used in paints, industrial coatings, plastic and paper. Tronox has announced its intention to appeal
the ruling.
The operators of a debt collection business that allegedly used false
claims and threats to get people to pay debts – including debts they did not
owe or that the defendants had no authority to collect – are banned from the
debt collection business and from buying or selling debt, under settlements
with the FTC. In addition to their allegedly
fraudulent conduct, according to the FTC complaint, defendants illegally
contacted consumers’ employers and other third parties, and failed to provide
written notices and disclaimers required by law. Each order imposes a $3 million judgment that
will be partially suspended, due to the defendants’ inability to pay. The full judgments will become due
immediately if the defendants are found to have misrepresented their financial
condition.
Sellers of hockey pucks and
recreational and outdoor equipment agreed to stop making false “Made in USA”
claims in two FTC cases. In the hockey
puck matter, the FTC alleged that Patriot Puck claimed in its advertising,
packaging, and promotional materials: “Made in America,” “Proudly Made in the
USA,” “100% American Made!” and “The only American Made Hockey Puck!” In fact, Patriot Puck’s hockey pucks are
wholly imported from China. In the
recreational and outdoor equipment matter, the FTC alleged that Sandpiper of
California, Inc. and PiperGear USA, Inc. claimed in advertisements, product
labels, and promotional materials, and on company websites and social media,
that their backpacks, travel bags, wallets, and other products are all or
virtually all made in the United States.
In fact, Sandpiper imports more than 95 percent of its products as
finished goods, and approximately 80 percent of PiperGear’s products either are
imported as finished goods, or contain significant imported components.
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The FTC will welcome foreign colleagues from agencies
of the European Commission, India, Japan, and Switzerland on September 17 to
work alongside staff of the Bureaus of Competition and Economics, and the
Office of International Affairs for about three months. Since the program’s inception in 2007, 111
international colleagues from 38 jurisdictions have had an opportunity to work
with FTC attorneys, economists, and investigators, gaining first-hand
experience of how the FTC carries out its enforcement and policy work.
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With the arrival of the 2018 hurricane season, the FTC has published tips
on preparing for, dealing with, and recovering from the long-term impacts of a
hurricane, as well as information on giving wisely to help those in need.
The Bureau of Competition has published a blog post to
make parties and their counsel aware that it typically takes four weeks for the
FTC to review a consent package after staff and the parties formally submit the
settlement package to the Director of the Bureau of Competition. This includes two weeks for review by the
Directors of the Bureaus of Competition and Economics followed by review of
their recommendations by the Commission.
While the Commission review typically takes two weeks, the Commission’s
time to review and to vote is solely in the Commission’s discretion.
Econsumer.gov Consumer
Education Video Is Now Available in Six Languages
A consumer education video on reporting online international
scams to econsumer.gov, a joint project of consumer protection agencies around
the world, is now available in Polish (subtitled), as well as in English, French, Korean, Spanish, and Turkish (subtitled). The Polish version will be posted next
week. Help share the video to ensure it
reaches as many consumers as possible. Through
econsumer.gov, agencies work together to combat consumer fraud. To learn how your organization can participate
in and promote this project, please contact Hui Ling Goh of the FTC’s Office of
International Affairs at hgoh@ftc.gov.
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