Antitrust and 21st Century Bigness: Dealing with Tech Platforms in a Globalized World

Antitrust laws in the United States have evolved with the economy and technological change, moving from the trustbusting of Standard Oil to the last of the “Big Cases” – AT&T and Microsoft.  Today the antitrust laws face a new challenge. Giant platform companies such as Google, Facebook, Amazon, and Apple have achieved unprecedented power over technological markets and everyday life.  The growth of these companies raises the question whether existing U.S. antitrust laws are capable of checking their power and whether we have strayed too far from the Sherman Act’s intended purpose.  In this Symposium, panelists will address these issues and the solutions that have been advanced in the United States and in Europe.

Agenda

8:00 am
Registration & Breakfast

8:30am
Welcome Remarks
Trevor MORRISON | Dean, NYU School of Law
Eleanor FOX | Professor, NYU School of Law

8:45am
Keynote Speech
Congressman David CICILLINE | Chairman, House Antitrust Subcommittee

9:30am
Panel 1: Monopolization and Abuse: Application to Platforms and Digital Markets
Is traditional monopolization/abuse analysis adequate for assessing dominant firm conduct by Big Tech firms?  How should such analysis address the distinctive characteristics of platforms and digital markets and the business models of firms operating in such markets?

Cristina CAFFARRA | Vice President and Head of European Competition, Charles River Associates
Andrew GAVIL | Professor, Howard University School of Law
Thomas HÖPPNER | Partner, Hausfeld Rechtsanwälte LLP
Daniel RUBINFELD | Professor, NYU School of Law
Kalpana SRINIVASAN | Partner, Susman Godfrey LLP
Moderator: Harry FIRST | Professor, NYU School of Law

11:00am
Coffee Break

11:15am
Panel 2: Big Tech Mergers: Killer Acquisitions and Competition Analysis
How should Big Tech acquisitions be evaluated, including the acquisition of nascent upstarts?

Claes BENGTSSON | Head of Unit, Chief Economist Team, DG Competition, European Commission
Debbie FEINSTEIN| Partner, Arnold & Porter LLP
John NEWMAN | Associate Professor, University of Miami School of Law
Sharis POZEN | Partner and Co-Chair of Global Antitrust Group, Clifford Chance
Hon. Vaughn WALKER | Retired United States District Judge for the Northern District of California
Moderator: Lawrence WHITE | Professor, NYU Stern School of Business

12:45pm
Luncheon Talk

A Conversation with Tim WU | Professor, Columbia Law School and author of "The Curse of Bigness"
Moderator: Stephen CALKINS | Professor, Wayne State University Law School and Sutherland Fellow, University College Dublin Sutherland School of Law

2:00pm
Panel 3: Solutions under Current Law: Doctrine and Remedy
Can current competition laws reach—and remedy—anticompetitive conduct by Big Tech firms?

Susan CREIGHTON | Partner, Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
Daniel FRANCIS | Deputy Director, Bureau of Competition, U.S. Federal Trade Commission (former Associate Director for Digital Markets, U.S. Federal Trade Commission)
William ISAACSON | Partner, Boies Schiller Flexner LLP
Abbott (Tad) LIPSKY, JR. | Adjunct Professor, George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School
Steven SALOP | Professor, Georgetown University Law Center
Moderator: Michael HAUSFELD | Chairman, Hausfeld LLP

3:30pm
Coffee Break

3:45pm
Panel 4: Legislative Reform: What Changes for Antitrust Law and Institutions?
If competition laws need to be updated to address anticompetitive conduct by Big Tech firms, what legislative and/or regulatory changes are desirable?  What institutional arrangements should be made to encompass antitrust, consumer protection, and data/privacy protection?

Diana MOSS | President, American Antitrust Institute
Thomas PHILIPPON | Professor, NYU Stern School of Business
Joseph STIGLITZ | Professor, Columbia University
Luigi ZINGALES | Professor, University of Chicago Booth School of Business
Moderator: Scott HEMPHILL | Professor, NYU School of Law

5:15pm
Closing Wrap-up: New York Minute
Harry FIRST | Professor, NYU School of Law
Eleanor FOX | Professor, NYU School of Law

5:30pm
Cocktail Reception

Admission is free.  Please note that space is limited, and seating will be given based on the order of registrations received. For advance registration, please click here.