Antitrust Lawyer Blog

On February 28, Nicholas C. Albert, an affiliate Webmaster who used the allure of “free” music downloads to spread malicious computer code, is settling FTC charges he violated federal law. The defendant, who was paid to distribute the code by the company that developed it, will give up all of his ill-gotten gains and is permanently bared him from interfering with consumers’ computer use, including distributing software code that tracks consumers’ Internet activity or collects other personal information, changes their preferred homepage or other browser settings, inserts new toolbars onto their browsers, installs dialer programs, inserts advertising hyperlinks into third-party Web pages, or installs other advertising software. He is also prohibited from making false or misleading representations; prohibited from distributing advertising software and spyware; and is required to perform substantial due diligence and monitoring if he is to participate in any affiliate program. Albert will also give up his ill-gotten gains – $3,300.

Continue reading " Programmer Gives Up All The Money He Made Distributing Spyware " »

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On February 27, the FTC approved a petition from General Dynamics Corporation (“General Dynamics”) to divest its 50% interest in American Ordinance LLC (“AO”). The divestiture was required to maintain competition in the U.S. and Canadian markets for melt-pour load, assemble, and pack (“LAP”) services. Through its petition, General Dynamics requested Commission approval to divest its interest in AO to Day & Zimmerman, Inc. (“DZI”), or one or more direct or indirect wholly owned subsidiaries of DZI. DZI currently owns the other 50 percent interest in AO, which operates the Milan Army Ammunition Plant (“AAP”) in Tennessee and the AAP in Middletown, Iowa. By a vote of 5-0, the Commission approved the proposed divestiture to DZI.

Continue reading " Commission Approves Application for Proposed Divestiture in Matter of General Dynamics/SNC " »

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On February 23, the Commission approved an application for divestiture from Dan L. Duncan (“Duncan”); EPCO, Inc. (“EPCO”); Texas Eastern Products Pipeline Company, LLC; and TEPPCO Partners, L.P. (together “TEPPCO”), concerning a 2006 FTC order related to TEPPCO’s interest in the Mont Belvieu Storage Partners, L.P. (“MBSP”). Under the terms of the FTC decision and order, Duncan, EPCO, and TEPPCO were required to divest TEPPCO’s interest in MBSP and sell certain pipelines, land, and other assets owned by TEPPCO in and around Mont Belvieu. MBSP is a partnership between TEPPCO Partners, L.P. and Louis Dreyfus Energy Services, L.P. (“Louis Dreyfus”), and provides salt dome storage for natural gas liquids in Mont Belvieu.

Continue reading " Commission Approves Application for Proposed Divestiture in Matter of Dan L. Duncan, et al. " »

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On February 21, Robert Taylor, the former president of a Clearbrook, Virginia marine products company agreed to plead guilty for his participation in two separate conspiracies to rig bids and allocate customers with respect to marine products purchased by the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Coast Guard, and other public and private entities. Mr. Taylor was also charged for his role in a conspiracy to bribe an employee of the City of New York to win orders for marine products. Mr. Taylor agreed to serve 30 months in prison and pay a $100,000 criminal fine. Mr. Taylor is the second executive to agree to plead guilty and has also agreed to cooperate with the DOJ's ongoing investigation in the marine products industry.

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On February 20, the DOJ announced Mittal Steel Company N.V. must divest its Sparrows Point facility, located near Baltimore, Maryland to remedy the competitive harm arising from Mittal’s $33 billion acquisition of Arcelor S.A. On Aug. 1, 2006, the Antitrust Division entered into a settlement agreement with Mittal and Arcerlor that provided for various options to resolve the anticompetitive concerns arising from the merger.

Continue reading " Justice Department Requires Mittal Steel to Divest Sparrows Point Steel Mill " »

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On February 16, the Commission received a petition from Service Corporation International (“SCI”) and Alderwoods Group, Inc. seeking approval of a proposed divestiture related to SCI’s recent acquisition of Alderwoods. The FTC’s consent agreement and order required that SCI and Alderwoods divest a range of funeral home and cemetery service companies. Through this petition, the companies requested approval to divest Yuma Mortuary & Crematory of Yuma, Arizona, to C.E.J. Management, Inc. The FTC accepted public comments on the proposed divestiture for 30 days, until March 19, 2007, after which it decided to approve it.

Continue reading " FTC Receives Sixth Petition for Approval of Proposed Divestiture from SCI and Alderwoods Group " »

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On February 9, the FTC received a petition for approval of a proposed divestiture from Thermo Electron Corporation. Under the order, Thermo was required to divest the high-performance centrifugal vacuum evaporators (“CVE”s) assets to a Commission-approved buyer. In the petition, Thermo requested FTC approval to divest the CVE assets to Riverlake Partners, L.P. (Riverlake) and, in part owing to the acquisition of certain indirect ownership interests, to MVC Capital, Inc. (“MVC”). The petition was approved

Continue reading " FTC Receives Application for Approval of Proposed Divestiture from Thermo Electron Corporation; Final Consent Orders Approved in Matters of Advocate Health Partners and General Dynamics/SNC Technologies " »

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On February 2, a Canadian telemarketer that falsely claimed it could reduce U.S. consumers’ credit card rates, was stopped by a federal court.

The FTC’s complaint alleges that the defendants have sold credit card interest rate reduction services since December 2005, claiming affiliation with consumers’ credit card companies. The defendants promise to effect credit card rates between 4.75 percent and 9 percent, thus saving consumers at least $2,500, and that if consumers do not save that amount their money will be refunded. The complaint also alleges that the defendants engaged in Caller ID spoofing, causing consumers’ caller identification services to display telephone numbers that do not belong to the defendants, but rather to innocent victims whose telephone numbers are misappropriated.
The defendants sent consumers promotional materials with promises to reduce their interest rates, and a “financial profile form” that the consumers had to mail back for $675 plus $20 for shipping and handling. The form asks consumers to list their current balance, credit limit, interest rate, and suggested minimum payment for each of their credit card and other debts, as well as their social security number and other personal information.

Continue reading " FTC Stops Credit Card Rate Reduction Scam " »

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