The EC is investigating Danish pharmaceutical company Lundbeck to determine whether it took improper actions intended to hinder the entry of generic citalopram, and anti-depressant drug, into European markets.
Category Archives: Section 2 Standards
IBM Acused of Monopolizing Mainframe Market
December 15, 2009 – 10:57 am
Neon Enterprise Software has sued IBM in the Western District of Texas arguing that the mainframe computer giant has engaged in unfair competition in telling customers that they may not use a Neon software product. According to the complaint, mainframe customers with legacy systems are effectively locked into paying IBM large licensing fees. In recent […]
Thermostat Class Action Gets Certified
December 15, 2009 – 10:28 am
In Wright et al. v. Honeywell International Inc., Vermont’s highest court has reversed and remanded a lower state court’s denial of class certification to a consumer collective action alleging Honeywell International Inc. abused its dominant position in the thermostat market. Vermont Supreme Court held that the trial court applied too rigorous a standard in denying […]
US Supreme Court Denies Cert in FTC v. Rambus
December 8, 2009 – 5:16 pm
Update December 2009: The EC has agreed to close its investigation of Rambus in exchange for Rambus’s agreement to issue royalty free licenses for its SDR and DDR chips and to charge 1.5% for patents necessary for later chip standards, a percentage point reduction from the company’s current royalties for DDR chips. Ramus is not […]
California FDC Upholds Monopolization Claim Against Children’s Hospital
December 1, 2009 – 1:53 pm
In Perinatal Medical Group v. Children’s Hosp. of Central CA, Eastern District of California judge Lawrence O’Neill refused to dismiss a Section 2 claim against the hospital for requiring demanding that the plaintiffs agree to only assign patients to the Children’s Hospital, and when the group refused, entering an exclusive contract with a sub-group of […]
New York AG Sues Intel
November 5, 2009 – 3:54 pm
In a case mirroring claims that lend to a fine in the European Union in excess of $1 billion, the state of New York has filed an antitrust action alleging that Intel improperly monopolized the computer chip market by paying rebates to computer makers to keep them from dealing with Intel competitor AMD. The gist of the […]
Heavy-duty Transmission Manufacturer Illegal Forced Exclusive Dealing
October 27, 2009 – 12:34 pm
In ZF Meritor LLC and Meritor Transmission Corp. v. Eaton Corp., District of Delaware jury found that Eaton Corp. violated the Sherman Act and the Clayton Act, in the heavy-duty truck transmission market in a suit brought by two affiliates of rival ArvinMeritor Inc. In their suit, Plaintiffs claimed that Eaton used its dominant position in […]
European Court of Justice Orders EC to Consider Pro-Competitive Justifications for Limiting Parallel Trading
October 15, 2009 – 12:45 pm
The European Court of Justice has upheld a lower court’s reversal of a European Commission decision to prohibit Glaxo-SmithKline from restricting parallel trading of drugs among countries within the EU. Following a policy of open parallel trading the Commission rejected Glaxo-SmithKline’s attempt to sell a number of drugs into the Spanish market at lower prices, […]
Monopolization Claim in Eyelash Market Dismissed
October 15, 2009 – 11:52 am
In Allergan Inc. v. Photomedex Inc. et al., Central District of California Judge James V. Selna partly dismissed Athena Cosmetics Inc.’s allegations accusing rival Allergan Inc. of monopolizing the relevant market in ongoing litigation that arose from a patent related to eyelash enhancement products. The judge tossed Athena’s counterclaims of unfair competition and monopolization as they […]