Rethinking Antitrust

#39: FTC v. Meta: The Experiments That Undercut the FTC’s Monopolization Case

Bilal Sayyed sits down with Compass Lexecon economists Joseph Goodman and Evan McKay to discuss one of the most closely watched monopolization cases in recent years: the FTC’s allegation that Facebook’s acquisitions of Instagram and WhatsApp were efforts to maintain its monopoly in the market for Personal Social Networking Services. At the center of the case—and the court’s decision—is a simple but always core question: What is the relevant market and who is in it?  Join Bilal, Evan and Joseph for a discussion of the economic evidence - drawn from both natural experiments and field experiments designed by John List and the team - that the judge credited as the most helpful evidence presented to answer those questions.  Links: Joseph Goodman bio page Evan McKay bio page Consumer Demand and Market Competition with Time-Intensive Goods

#38: Antitrust Issues in the Fight for Warner Bros.?

Note: This conversation was recorded before Netflix officially withdrew from its attempt to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery’s studio and streaming assets. On a new episode of Rethinking Antitrust, Bilal is joined by John M. Yun, Professor of Law at George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School, and Jay Ezrielev, former economic advisor to Joseph Simons, to discuss whether there are insurmountable antitrust issues in Netflix’s and Paramount’s competing bids for Warner Brothers.    Links: John Yun bio page John Yun Written Testimony before the House Judiciary Committee Jay Ezrielev bio page Jay Ezrielev Written Testimony before the House Judiciary Committee 

#37: Canada is About to Get Leveled By Bigger and Stronger Players

The United States needs a strong Canada.  But Canada is clearly falling behind the major economies of the world and is now under significant pressure from the United States.  What can be done about Canada’s economic malaise? Is it a competition issue? Or something else – protectionism, intra-country trade barriers, failure to diversify markets, a corporate governance and government regulatory environment that prioritizes limiting risk and maintaining stability?    Dany Assaf, a globally recognized competition and foreign investment lawyer at Torys, and Walid Hejazi, a professor of international business, economic analysis and policy, at University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management, join me on the podcast to discuss their new book (with Joe Manget) Everybody’s Business: How to Ensure Canadian Prosperity Through the Twenty-First Century. Have they diagnosed the causes of Canada’s stagnation, and have they identified the solution? We discuss.

#36: Unrealistic Causation Standards for Remedies in Monopolization Cases?

Kathleen Bradish, Vice President and Director, Legal Advocacy, American Antitrust Institute, joins the podcast to discuss her new paper, Unrealistic Causation Standards Put Effective Monopolization Remedies At Risk. Kathleen’s paper argues that Supreme Court case law prioritizes effectiveness and judicial flexibility over application of rigid causation standards in designing relief for violations of Sherman Act Section 2. Judge Mehta’s remedy opinion in the Google Search case, accepting this discretionary authority and recognizing the need for effective relief, may offer support for broader remedies in other monopolization cases brought by the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission, according to Kathleen. Links:Rethinking Antitrust # 33: Examining the Ruling in the DOJ’s Ad Tech Case (Bilal Sayyed, Derek Moore, and Giovanna Massarotto) (June 24, 2025).Rethinking Antitrust Podcast # 18, Judge Douglas Ginsburg on Antitrust Law and the Tech Industry (Bilal Sayyed and Douglas Ginsburg) (Jan. 24, 2025). Rethinking Antitrust Podcast # 15, The Microsoft Framework: Shaping Antitrust Enforcement Today (Bilal Sayyed, Andy Gavil, and Harry First) (Dec. 4, 2024). Transcript, Rethinking Antitrust # 36:  Unrealistic Causation Standards for Remedies in Monopolization Cases?

#35: Bread and Butter Antitrust: Where do the States Fit In?

Gwendolyn J. Lindsay Cooley, former Assistant Attorney General for Antitrust for the state of Wisconsin, AI merger tech entrepreneur, antitrust podcaster, and practicing lawyer, joins the podcast to discuss why the State AGs must play a leading role in refocusing antitrust enforcement (and where it should go).  We also discuss Taimet, a Targeted Artificial Intelligence Merger Evaluation Tool, which I was very excited to learn about. A Farewell From Gwendolyn Cooley (Sept. 2024)Written Testimony of Gwendolyn J. Lindsay Cooley, Continuing a Bipartisan Path Forward on Antitrust Enforcement and Reform (Dec. 17, 2024)Fireside Chat with Gwendolyn Cooley (Oct. 2024)Antitrust 101 Podcast