Summer 2013, Volume 6 Number 1

In this issue, we’re updating two rather diverse areas. First, we look at multisided markets. There is very little case law that incorporates current economic thinking about these markets—so do people really to need pay attention to the differences with conventional markets? And, second, when Ireland needed help from the Troika, one of the requirements—controversial—was […]

Christian Ahlborn, Christoph Barth, Jun 17, 2013 Long before the era of e-commerce, girls would be let into nightclubs for free (or get bonus drinks) while guys would be charged often “excessive” prices to get past the bouncer. Multisided markets involve economic platforms that provide related goods or services to two or more distinct customer […]

David Evans, Jun 13, 2013 Multisided platforms create value by bringing two or more different types of economic agents together and facilitating interactions between them that make all agents better off. These platforms play critical roles in many economically important industries. There is considerable material on this subject; Richard Schmalensee and I have provided a […]

Sinead Eaton, Jun 13, 2013 When extending the bailout facility availed of by Ireland, the International Monetary Fund, European Central Bank, and Commission of the European Union, now known as “the troika,” insisted that a number of measures be taken in respect of the Irish economy. While many of these related to reducing the costs […]

James Musgrove, Jun 13, 2013 At the 2013 American Bar Association Section of Antitrust Law Spring Meeting I had the honor to chair a session entitled Both Sides Now: What’s Special About Two Sided Markets? The program benefitted from the participation of some of the leading legal and economic thinkers on this issue, including Dr. […]

Owen Kendler, Jun 13, 2013 The antitrust community talks perennially about multisided or two-sided markets. At first glance, this attention may appear misplaced. The courts have not reached a final decision in a litigated case involving a multisided market since 2003, when the Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit affirmed the U.S. Government’s win […]

Vincent Power, Jun 13, 2013 Occasionally, it is a good idea to take a moment to get off the treadmill and survey one’s surroundings. The invitation by Competition Policy International’s Antitrust Chronicle to reflect on Irish competition law and practice is one of those moments. So, after twenty two years of “modern” competition law in […]