The Department of Justice, urged on by small wireless carriers, launched a preliminary investigation of handset exclusivity agreements between large carriers and equipment makers, plus other competitiveness issues, industry sources said Monday. The “preliminary” investigation was reported Monday on The Wall Street Journal’s website. A Justice Department spokeswoman had no comment.
The Justice Department, urged on by small wireless carriers, launched a preliminary investigation of handset exclusivity agreements between large carriers and equipment makers, plus other competitiveness issues, industry sources said Monday. The “preliminary” investigation was reported Monday on The Wall Street Journal’s website. A Justice Department spokeswoman had no comment. Donald Russell, a DoJ antitrust lawyer during the Clinton administration, said such a probe would likely start with investigators asking preliminary questions and seeking information to be submitted on a voluntary basis. “From there you will often see a formal request for documents and information called a civil investigative demand, a CID,” Russell said. He told us exclusive handset agreements likely do not violate antitrust laws. “In general antitrust law permits companies to enter into exclusive arrangements unless there’s a very specific competitive problem that would result from that,” he said “To have such a competitive problem you typically need to have at least one of the firms involved be in a dominant position.” An investigation is welcome news for small carriers, said Caressa Bennet, counsel to the Rural Telecommunications Group. Public Knowledge President Gigi Sohn said a probe is long overdue. “Consumers have suffered over the past 10 years as the industry has consolidated and strengthened its hold over which services can be offered and which equipment can be used.” The NoChokepoints coalition said the focus of any investigation should be on “the clearly anti-competitive rates, terms and conditions imposed by AT&T and Verizon on the high-capacity broadband market, also known as special access.” But other industry executives questioned the extent to which even a preliminary investigation is underway. “We haven’t had any indications from the DoJ about any such review,” said David Fish, spokesman for Verizon. “We certainly haven’t been contacted” by DoJ, a CTIA spokesman said.
The International Trade Administration has issued its preliminary results of the following antidumping duty administrative reviews:
The Department of Justice, urged on by small wireless carriers, launched a preliminary investigation of handset exclusivity agreements between large carriers and equipment makers, plus other competitiveness issues, industry sources said Monday. The “preliminary” investigation was reported Monday on The Wall Street Journal’s website. A Justice Department spokeswoman had no comment.
The International Trade Administration has issued the final results of its antidumping duty administrative review of honey from Argentina for the period of December 1, 2006 through November 30, 2007.
The International Trade Administration frequently issues notices on antidumping and countervailing duty orders, investigations, etc. which Broker Power considers to be "minor" in importance as they concern actions that occur after an order is issued, neither announce nor cause any changes to an order's duty rates, scope, affected firms, or effective period, etc.
The International Trade Administration has made a preliminary affirmative determination that countervailable subsidies are being provided to a producer and exporter of Ni-resist piston inserts from Argentina.
The International Trade Commission has announced the institution of an investigation and commencement of a preliminary phase antidumping injury investigation regarding certain woven electronic blankets from China.
Comcast debtholders tendered $1.73 billion in notes after it offered to buy back $1.3 billion, the cable operator said. A preliminary deadline for the buyback expired Tuesday night, but the offer stands through 9 a.m. July 17.
The International Trade Administration has issued the preliminary results of two antidumping duty changed circumstances review of frozen warmwater shrimp from Vietnam.