Department of Justice

The Department of Justice announced March 8 that it will require Election Systems & Software (ES&S) to divest voting equipment systems assets it purchased in September 2009 from Premier Election Solutions Inc. in order to restore competition.

The Department of Justice announced that it will not challenge a proposal by MyWire to form the Global News Service, an online subscription news aggregation service.

The Department of Justice's Antitrust Division announced the closing of its investigation into the proposed Internet search and paid search advertising agreement between Microsoft Corporation and Yahoo!.

Irma Azrelyant and Joshua Finkle, the former co-owners of New York and New Jersey-based Deaf and Hard of Hearing Interpreting Services Inc. (DHIS), pleaded guilty to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Video Relay Service (VRS) program of more than $7 million, announced Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer of the Criminal Division.

Attorney General Eric Holder announced the formation of a new Department of Justice Task Force on Intellectual Property as part of a Department-wide initiative to confront the growing number of domestic and international intellectual property (IP) crimes.

On Thursday, the Department of Justice advised the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York that despite the substantial progress reflected in the proposed amended settlement agreement in The Authors Guild Inc. et al. v. Google Inc., class certification, copyright and antitrust issues remain.

The Department of Justice announced that it will require Ticketmaster to license its ticketing software, divest ticketing assets and subject itself to anti-retaliation provisions in order to proceed with its proposed merger with Live Nation.

The Justice Department announced separate agreements under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Pace University in New York City and Reed College in Portland, Ore., regarding the use in a classroom setting of the electronic book reader, the Kindle DX, a hand-held technological device that simulates the experience of reading a book. Under the agreements, the universities generally will not purchase, recommend or promote use of the Kindle DX, or any other dedicated electronic book reader, unless the devices are fully accessible to students who are blind and have low vision.

Two former Viable Communications executives have plead guilty to engaging in a conspiracy to defraud the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) Video Relay Service (VRS) program of more than $2.5 million.

The Department of Justice announced today that it will require AT&T to divest assets in eight areas in Louisiana and Mississippi in order to proceed with its $944 million acquisition of Centennial Communications.