All Publications
Press Releases
June 9th Event: The National Broadband Plan: Economics, Politics and Policy
The Technology Policy Institute and the Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research are co-hosting “The National Broadband Plan: Economics, Politics and Policy,” a full-day conference scheduled for June 9th at Stanford University. Presentations and panel discussions will focus on such topics as broadband competition and demand, the effect of broadband deployment on economic development, spectrum allocation, and how recent events concerning the FCC’s jurisdiction over broadband could impact implementation of the National Broadband Plan.
Commentaries and Op-Eds
Screening and Simplifying the Competition Arguments in the NBC/Comcast Transaction
The proposed joint venture between Comcast Corporation and NBC Universal is a significant transaction in a significant market. The transaction will create a large media and distribution company, including the programming assets of both NBC, a leading national programmer, and Comcast, which owns several cable networks and some regional sports networks, and the distribution assets of NBC (namely, its owned-and-operated broadcast television stations). This new company will be majority-owned by Comcast, which in its own right is the nation�s largest distributor of multi-channel video programming, and Comcast could be in the position, within the next few years, to own 100% of the new joint venture. The size of the transaction is made more important by the markets in which the companies operate: the companies are more than just producers and distributors of entertainment and sports programming, which are of course important in their own rights, the companies also produce and distribute news and political programming. The mass media has long been considered a market important enough not only to draw scrutiny from antitrust authorities but also to justify the attention of a specialized regulator, using sector-specific regulation designed to achieve specific outcomes.
Press Releases
NBC/Comcast Should be Judged only on Antitrust Concerns
Antitrust analysis of the proposed merger between Comcast and NBC Universal should focus only on its effect on competition in relevant markets and resulting harm to consumers, states James Speta in “Screening and Simplifying the Competition Arguments in the NBC/Comcast Transaction” released today by the Technology Policy Institute.
Press Releases
Google-AdMob: A Bad Precedent
TPI President Thomas Lenard published a piece on Forbes.com discussing the expected involvement of federal regulators in Google’s acquisition of AdMob. In the piece, Lenard warns of possible shortcomings of traditional merger analysis if applied to the fast-moving mobile advertising market and urges regulators to carefully consider the long-term effects of antitrust action on innovation in this space. The entire piece can be found at Forbes.com.
Press Releases
Aspen Forum Preview Agenda Released
A preview agenda of the Aspen Forum, to be held August 22nd – 24th, is now available on the TPI website. The event will include top leaders in the technology and policy sectors, including Mark McLaughlin, President and Chief Executive Officer of VeriSign, Thomas Tauke, Executive Vice President of Public Affairs, Policy and Communications at Verizon, and Hal Varian, Chief Economist of Google. Edward Mueller, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Qwest Communications, will offer opening remarks at the premier policy event.