What lies ahead for big-business in the United States? According to Christine Varney, the new head of the Antitrust Division of America's Department of Justice, tough scrutiny and a vigorous new antitrust policy are to follow.
There is already speculation that her first target will be Google, aiming to make it the new Microsoft. The FTC has begun an investigation into the overlap of the boards of Google and Apple, possibly paving the way for more stringent oversight. Varney has said that she believes that the failure of the Bush Administration to effectively monitor antitrust activity was a direct contributor to the current economic state.
However, there is another issue: while Varney seems ready to hold large firms' feet to the fire, are some organizations just too big to be allowed to fail, especially given the instability of the economy?
2 comments:
I think that this is a very interesting article. The issue of anti-trust in America is a tough question to answer. I do not necessarily agree that the governments failure to break-up anti-trust organizations has, in part, lead to the current economic state. I think that anti-trust often does not do what it is intended, and can often hurt competition. In effect, it stifles innovation and ultimately leads to the consumer being worse off, having to buy a less quality product. Overall, I think it is more important for the government to concentrate on lowering barriers for entrepreneurs and small businesses to truly help markets.
I really enjoyed this article because it seems to challenge the idea that every crime must be punished no matter the surrounding circumstances. Given the current economic environment, some would suggest that it is not the time to start bringing major cases against some of the most innovative companies in the world. Google is a prime example of a large and powerful company that, “if Google were found some day to have abused its commanding position, it is hard to imagine how the cure could be better than the disease.” Personally, I am not sure that I would have a problem if it were discovered that Google is violating anti-trust laws. For the consumer, it seems, Google provides numerous products of high quality and great innovation. But even with such a positive image, is it right to let Google abuse its position just because it provides a good product? I would be very interested to see what the public reaction would be to an anti-trust case against Google. I hypothesize that it would be quite the opposite of what Microsoft experienced. How to balance consumer benefit and protecting other firms in the industry is difficult at best. Hopefully, Ms. Varney can strike that balance during her term.
Post a Comment