#341: The FTC Tries to Shape the Market

Tech Policy Podcast

TechFreedom

Technology

4.8 • 45 Ratings

🗓️ 29 March 2023

⏱️ 53 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

The Federal Trade Commission is making a lot of headlines. Much of that news revolves around the agency’s notable antitrust cases—such as its efforts to block Meta’s purchase of Within, to break up Facebook and Instagram, and to block Microsoft’s purchase of Activision. How aggressive is the FTC’s approach? What is its plan? Our guest is Bilal Sayyed, senior competition counsel at TechFreedom. He explains where the agency’s antitrust policy breaks new ground—and where it does not.

Transcript

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0:00.0	The Federal Trade Commission has the authority to enforce the federal antitrust laws.
0:16.3	You might think that in doing so, in seeking to give the antitrust law shape through enforcement,
0:23.9	the FTC would not try to drastically change how those laws are understood and applied.
0:29.4	After all, the FTC's commissioners are not elected, and they cannot be removed absent misconduct by the president.
0:37.2	They lack the democratic legitimacy or political
0:39.6	accountability to revolutionize how the antitrust laws work. That's my view, anyway. Led by
0:47.9	Chair Lena Kahn, a majority, and soon all of the FTC's current crop of commissioners,
0:55.1	seem to see things rather differently.
0:58.2	Khan, for her part, has referred to the existential stakes of the agency's underreaching.
1:04.4	Quote, when identifying the top ten threats to the agency, she has said,
1:09.4	going too far is, quote, not on the list. Small wonder, then, that the agency, she has said. Going too far is, quote, not on the list. Small wonder,
1:14.2	then, that the agency has been launching aggressive antitrust suits. This is the Tech Policy
1:21.8	podcast. I'm Corbyn Barthold. I'm pleased to welcome for his first appearance on the show.
1:29.7	Belal Syed, senior competition council here at Tech Freedom.
1:34.7	Before joining us, Balal served as the director of the Office of Policy Planning, the
1:40.2	Federal Trade Commission's internal think tank.
1:43.8	Belal, welcome to the podcast.
1:47.6	All right.
1:48.1	Thank you.
1:48.9	It's going to be fun.
1:49.8	Happy to be here.
1:51.1	Yes, we have a lot to cover.
	...

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