SAN FRANCISCO—Apple and the company behind the video game Fortnite squared off Monday before three federal appellate judges who will render the next decision in a high-stakes battle over whether Apple created an illegal monopoly via its exclusive control of its iPhone app store. Such monopolies typically stifle competition and drive up consumer prices. The…
Justice Department Says 7 Board Directors Resigned Under Antitrust Pressure
WASHINGTON—Seven directors on the boards of five companies have resigned because of the Justice Department’s concerns over the directors holding similar board positions at rival companies, the department said on Wednesday. Three directors resigned from the board of IT management software company SolarWinds Corp., one because the person was on the boards of both SolarWinds…
Meta’s Privacy Obligations May Be Added to German Antitrust Probe, Court Adviser Says
LUXEMBOURG—Antitrust authorities may assess whether companies comply with EU data protection rules during their investigations, an adviser to Europe’s top court said on Tuesday, dealing a possible blow to Meta Platforms in its fight against the German competition agency. The non-binding opinion, if followed by the Court of the Justice of the Europe Union (CJEU)…
States Ask Appeals Court to Reinstate Facebook Lawsuit
WASHINGTON—A big group of states, led by New York, argued to an appeals court Monday that it should reinstate an antitrust lawsuit against Meta’s Facebook because of ongoing harm from the company’s actions and because the states had not waited too long to file their complaint. Barbara Underwood, solicitor general of New York which led…
UnitedHealth Group Can Move Ahead With Merger Despite Justice Department Objections: Federal Judge
A federal judge in Washington approved UnitedHealth Group’s multibillion-dollar plan to acquire Change Healthcare, giving the company a win over the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), which had sought to get the deal blocked. The merger was announced in January 2021. The Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the deal in February 2022, insisting that…
Microsoft Cloud Computing Changes to Allay EU Antitrust Concerns Effective Oct. 1
BRUSSELS—Amended licensing deals and other changes making it easier for cloud service providers to compete will take effect on October 1, Microsoft Corp said on Monday, a move triggered by complaints about the U.S. software company to EU antitrust regulators. Microsoft President Brad Smith had announced the changes in May but did not say when…
Amazon to Acquire Roomba Robot Vacuum Creator iRobot for $1.7 Billion
Amazon has entered into a definitive merger to acquire iRobot, the creator of Roomba robot vacuums, in an all-cash transaction valued at $1.7 billion, the companies announced Friday. “We know that saving time matters, and chores take precious time that can be better spent doing something that customers love,” said Dave Limp, SVP of Amazon…
Google Hit With Antitrust Complaint by Danish Job Search Rival
BRUSSELS—Google faces an antitrust complaint on Monday by Danish online job-search rival Jobindex, which told European Union regulators the Alphabet-owned business had allegedly unfairly favoured its own job-search service. The complaint could reinvigorate EU antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager’s scrutiny of the service, Google for Jobs. Three years ago, Vestager said she was looking into the…
Spirit in Talks Over JetBlue’s $3.4 Billion Offer, to Decide by End-June
Takeover target Spirit Airlines Inc. said on Tuesday it was in talks with JetBlue Airways Corp over a $3.4 billion sweetened offer and expects to decide on the proposal by the end of this month. The ultra-low-cost airline has granted JetBlue access to the due diligence information being shared with Frontier Group Holdings Inc. after…
US Sets High Bar to Settle Facebook Antitrust Suit: FTC Chair
WASHINGTON—Federal Trade Commission Chair (FTC) Lina Khan, who promised tougher antitrust enforcement, said she would not rule out a settlement with Meta’s Facebook, which the agency sued in 2020, but indicated there was a high bar for any agreement. In an interview on Tuesday, she also criticized what she said was a large number obviously…
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