Today, the Federal Trade Commission and 48 state attorneys general filed antitrust lawsuits against Facebook. The suits focus on how Facebook has bought out competitors and potential competitors to stifle competition, as well as how Facebook has withheld access to its network anticompetitively. The suits follow three years of Public Knowledge advocacy on the competition challenges posed by dominant digital platforms like Facebook, including most recently our letters urging the FTC, Department of Justice, and state attorneys general to review Facebook’s conduct for anticompetitive behavior.

Today, we’re happy to announce our newest white paper, “Mind Your Own Business: Protecting Proprietary Third-Party Information From Digital Platforms,” by Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld. The paper stems from a platform competition research project led by Public Knowledge and supported by Omidyar Network.

Yesterday, Public Knowledge and the R Street Institute filed a comment at the International Trade Commission, arguing that it should deny Sonos’s request that categories of consumer products be blocked from import. On the merits, Public Knowledge finds Sonos’s ITC request runs contrary to the public interest. However, this is not an indictment against Sonos’s legitimate competition concerns. These competitive concerns demand resolution if consumers are to benefit from real, interoperable choices in the growing Internet of Things marketplace.

Public Knowledge is pleased to announce two additions and one change to our team. First, Public Knowledge welcomes Jenna Leventoff, Senior Policy Counsel, and Bertram Lee, Policy Counsel, as new additions to our government affairs and policy teams. They will add depth and experience to our policy analysis and advocacy across the full breadth of issues Public Knowledge is leading on, including free expression and content moderation, privacy, broadband deployment, and spectrum policy.

Recently, Senate Antitrust Subcommittee Ranking Member Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced the “Monopolization Deterrence Act of 2019.” The bill would enable the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice to seek civil monetary penalties against individuals and corporations that engage in anticompetitive behavior such as favoring their own services over a competitor’s service.

Today, Facebook confirmed during its Q2 earnings call and in its quarterly report that the Federal Trade Commission notified the company in June that the agency has opened an antitrust investigation into Facebook. An FTC investigation means there is particular conduct by the company that the agency is interested in, and that the agency is examining that conduct to determine if it violates antitrust law.

Today, the Department of Justice announced it will conduct a review of competition in digital platforms. Public Knowledge welcomes this announcement and urges the DOJ to thoroughly examine the persistence of market power and the lack of significant new entrants into digital platform markets.

Today, the House Judiciary Committee announced that it is launching a bipartisan investigation into whether large technology companies are behaving in anticompetitive ways, and whether existing competition law can adequately address the challenges posed by these digital giants. A careful analysis will enable Congress to better consider whether it should pass stronger competition laws targeting technology companies.

Today, Public Knowledge launches “Decoding Antitrust Law: A Primer for Advocates,” a new guide to antitrust law by Public Knowledge Competition Policy Counsel Charlotte Slaiman. The primer provides a basic foundation in antitrust law for policy advocates new to antitrust law, curious consumers, budding legal scholars, and anyone intrigued by what antitrust law is and how it can and can not be applied to address corporate concentration and increase competition.

According to reports, the Federal Trade Commission plans to open a study into the technology industry’s data practices. Called a “6(b)” study, this type of study enables the agency to broadly review an industry practice and allows the agency to compel information from witnesses. Public Knowledge previously urged the FTC to conduct such a study and commends the move to shine a light on the competitive impacts of these data practices.