#antitrust-litigation

#antitrust-litigation

The Trump administration agreed to stop pursuing a breakup of Live Nation and Ticketmaster as part of a settlement that blindsided state attorneys general in the middle of a trial. Attorneys general from 27 states and the District of Columbia are continuing to pursue the case without the US government, at least for now.

This case is about power, the power of a monopolist to control competition. Today, the concert ticket industry is broken. The United States and 39 states are counting on the Manhattan federal jury to end the monopoly and reward artists and consumers with a competitive marketplace that will leave them with more money.

A class action case for about 12.2 million users argues that Sony "occupies a dominant position in relation to the digital distribution of PlayStation games and in-game content and that it has been unfairly charging its UK customers too much for digital games and in-game content purchased through the PlayStation Store."

"Our products are beneficial for people and businesses and exemplify American innovation and economic growth," Newstead said. "We look forward to continuing to partner with the Administration and to invest in America."

Real estate data company Crexi has brought on celebrity lawyer Alex Spiro - known for defending billionaires, rappers, and professional athletes - in its scrap with CoStar Group. According to court filings on Wednesday, Spiro will now defend Crexi in its legal battle with the real estate data giant. The $3,000-an-hour lawyer has represented clients like Elon Musk, Jay-Z, and Megan Thee Stallion, and has also worked for a variety of businesses in disputes with short-sellers, rivals, and regulators.

Google's parent company Alphabet is the latest tech giant closing in on a $4 trillion valuation, amid the artificial intelligence boom and a report of a potential chips deal with Meta. The Mountain View search company's shares were up 1.62% on Tuesday and nearly 70% this year, for a market capitalization of $3.9 trillion. The Information reported on Monday that Meta was considering Google's AI chips for its 2027 data centers in a potential deal worth billions of dollars.

In a memorandum opinion released Tuesday, Judge James Boasberg of the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., said the FTC failed to prove its argument. The case, initially filed by the FTC five years ago, centered on Meta's acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp. "Whether or not Meta enjoyed monopoly power in the past, though, the agency must show that it continues to hold such power now," Boasberg said in the filing. "The Court's verdict today determines that the FTC has not done so."

Alphabet Inc.'s Google was ordered to pay 573 million ($666 million) in two antitrust-damages cases brought by German price-comparison websites following on from a European Union case against the search-engine giant. In a suit brought by Axel Springer SE-owned Idealo, which sought 3.3 billion, the Berlin Regional Court awarded 374 million plus 91 million in interest. In a second case brought by Producto GmbH, another price-comparison service that sought 290 million, the judges granted 89.7 million plus 17.7 million in interest.

The US Department of Justice and a coalition of states are demanding the sale of AdX. This platform enables publishers to sell advertising space through auctions that take place within milliseconds. Google charges a 20 percent commission for this. The Justice Department also wants Google to make the auction system open source, so that it is clear exactly how the winner is determined.