doj

Report: DOJ was hours from filing Google suit

It is widely known that Google pulled the plug on the search advertising deal with Yahoo only because it appeared that it would face a regulatory challenge. However, it emerged on Wednesday just how close the company came to facing an antitrust suit from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Sandy Litvack, the lawyer hired by the Justice Department to look into the search advertising pact between Google and Yahoo, said in an interview with American Lawyer's AmLaw Daily that the government had a suit ready and was just three hours away from filing it.

"We were going … Read more

LG, Sharp, Chunghwa admit to LCD price fixing

Updated at 12:40 p.m. PST with Dell's comments and historical perspective on Apple iMac shortages due to lack of LCD flat panel displays.

LG Display, Sharp, and Chunghwa Picture Tubes agreed to plead guilty to criminal charges for participating in a liquid crystal display price-fixing conspiracy and pay $585 million in fines, the U.S. Department of Justice announced Wednesday.

The three companies worked in concert to set prices on thin-film transistor LCDs, which are used in computer monitors, notebooks, televisions, mobile phones, and various electronics, according to the antitrust unit of the Justice Department.

Apple, Dell, … Read more

Yahoo shares rise amid broader market decline

Investors pushed shares of Yahoo up in morning trading Wednesday as analysts point to stronger profit margins due to cost cutting and a healthy increase in its search advertising revenues.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average, meanwhile, was down 298.30 points to 8,739.12 and the Nasdaq fell 34.01 points to 1,662.67.

Yahoo rose as high as 5.8 percent to $12.77 a share in intra-day trading, following weak third-quarter results it reported after the markets closed Tuesday. Yahoo's shares were moving in the black in the morning, while the broader markets were posting … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 817: 3.85G coming soon!

It's an exciting time to be in the market for a confusing incremental upgrade to your wireless broadband speeds, especially if you're into white space. Donald Bell joins the cast today for a rollicking discussion that includes a trifecta of unexpected good news for actual consumers. It's very exciting. Especially the part about the giant human smiley face in Russia. Listen now: Download today's podcast Episode 817

Judge declares mistrial in RIAA-Jammie Thomas trial http://blog.wired.com/27bstroke6/2008/09/not-for-publica.html http://news.cnet.com/8301-13578_3-10050757-38.html

DoJ agrees: IP enforcement bill is a … Read more

Sandy Litvack, a dogged trustbuster in pursuit of Google

Google and Yahoo are household names. But, Sandy Litvack? Not so much.

While Litvack may be obscure to the general public, he is well-known in antitrust circles as a sharp litigator--and one who Yahoo and Google may soon become acquainted with if the Department of Justice challenges the companies' controversial search advertising partnership.

For now, it's unclear whether the scope of the investigation will only focus on the Yahoo-Google deal. Some sources told CNET News that a federal investigation could broaden to examining Google's overall impact on the marketplace.

But there’s little question that bringing in Litvack … Read more

FAQ: Antitrust eyes on Yahoo-Google ad deal

Correction July 7 at 7:42 a.m. PDT: This article misstated the name of Jonathan Gleklen's law firm. It is Arnold & Porter.

Nobody, least of all Yahoo and Google, doubted that the two companies' search-advertising deal would escape any antitrust scrutiny.

But now some details are starting to emerge about just what form the Justice Department's investigation of the Yahoo-Google deal will take. The agency is expected to send civil investigative demands, or CIDs, within the next week not just to the two Internet powers, but also to competitors, advertisers, and potential partners.

At this stage, … Read more

Buzz Out Loud 714: Dr. M for mayor

Somehow, Dr. M has proven himself so diabolically clever that we kind of love him. In other news, will the next iPhone be unlocked, sell for $199 with AT&T contract, cure malaria, wash your dishes, and defeat Kasparov? It will if you believe the rumors. We like to believe them. It's a happy fantasy world. Also, Wikipedia is broken. Where have you heard that before? Oh, yeah. Here. Listen now: Download today's podcast EPISODE 714

AT&T to sell iPhone at a discount? http://techland.blogs.fortune.cnn.com/2008/04/29/ att-to-cut-the-price-of-apples-new-iphone/ http://www.news.com/8301-13579_3-9931806-37.htmlRead more

DOJ merchant of death roundup for 2007

Business is booming in the field of illegal, high tech weapons export, as shown by the Department of Justice's recently released Fact Sheet of Major US Export Enforcement Actions.

The roundup offers a "snapshot" of some of the more entertaining arrests and convictions of 2007. Military night vision goggles, aviation helmets, rocket launchers, guided missiles and microwave integrated circuits all made the list of off limit items. In many cases the export related crimes were further compounded by money laundering, drugs, theft and in the case of a Florida based mother and son team, conspiracy to murder.… Read more

Why does the DOJ oppose net neutrality?

According to Wikipedia, the Department of Justice is "designed to enforce the law and defend the interests of the United States according to the law and to ensure fair and impartial administration of justice for all Americans." So why is it that the Justice Department recently filed a press release stating its opposition to net neutrality? In the statement, the DOJ argues that "consumers and the economy are benefiting from the innovative and dynamic nature of the Internet," and that "regulators should be careful not to impose regulations that could limit consumer choice and investment in broadband facilities."

Of course, given that almost all locales are limited to at most two broadband carriers--the telephone and cable monopolies--there are already regulations that "limit consumer choice and investment in broadband facilities." The Justice Department seems to be tailoring its antitrust agenda in such a way as to serve the interests of certain big business interests and not the needs of the American people. If any company could enter the marketplace to offer high-speed Internet access then their position would at least be possible to defend. Were that the case, then people would be free to choose among a multitude of Internet offerings, some of which would likely offer neutrality while others would provide a preferential pipe. Only then would there be some teeth in the argument that the free market would ensure Americans get the best access at the best price. In reality, it is only the massive telecoms and cable companies that are able to provide high-speed Internet, and both camps have an economic incentive to abandon net neutrality.

Read more