Engaging economists in the ICN: Uniting under a common language

Martin Mandorff, Jan 10, 2013

CPI ICN Column edited by Maria Coppola (U.S. Federal Trade Commission)

The enforcement of unilateral conduct law is arguably the most challenging task of antitrust. Nowhere do the controversies run as deep as when determining whether a certain type of unilateral conduct is pro- or anticompetitive. Add to this the differences in legal standards and policy objectives, and achieving international convergence of unilateral conduct policy stands out as a herculean task.

The ICN Unilateral Conduct Working Group (UCWG) has nevertheless made important progress since its formation in 2006, as laid out in last month’s CPI ICN column, “Climbing Mount Everest with the ICN Unilateral Conduct Working Group”.¹ That column also suggested that by engaging more economists in the UCWG, the working group could help improve agency decision-making and promote convergence in the longer term. In this month’s column, I provide an economist’s viewpoint on how economists can contribute to, and benefit from, enhanced participation in the ICN in general, and in the UCWG in particular…

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Engaging economists in the ICN: Uniting under a common language