FTC Delivers Remarks on its 100 Year Anniversary | Practical Law

FTC Delivers Remarks on its 100 Year Anniversary | Practical Law

Nearing its 100th anniversary, the FTC delivered remarks on its past and future enforcement efforts in testimony before the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade.

FTC Delivers Remarks on its 100 Year Anniversary

Practical Law Legal Update 9-550-7565 (Approx. 3 pages)

FTC Delivers Remarks on its 100 Year Anniversary

by Practical Law Antitrust
Published on 03 Dec 2013 • USA (National/Federal)
Nearing its 100th anniversary, the FTC delivered remarks on its past and future enforcement efforts in testimony before the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade.
On December 3, 2013, FTC Chairwoman Edith Ramirez delivered remarks on behalf of the FTC to the US House of Representatives Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing and Trade on the occasion of the FTC's approaching 100 year anniversary. In addition to giving a brief history of the FTC and setting out the FTC's recent consumer protection enforcement trends, Ramirez discussed the FTC's recent efforts to stop anticompetitive mergers and other business practices in a range of industries, including:
  • Health care.
  • Technology.
  • Energy.
  • Consumer goods and services.
  • Manufacturing.
Ramirez explained that protecting competition results in:
  • Lower prices.
  • Increased quality of goods and services.
  • Enhanced innovation of new products and services.
In addition to stopping anticompetitive mergers and business practices, Ramirez stated that the FTC has promoted competition by sponsoring advocacy and education initiatives, which:
  • Deter anticompetitive mergers and business practices.
  • Reduce antitrust compliance costs.
Ramirez noted that in the 2013 fiscal year, the FTC pursued 27 new merger and nonmerger enforcement actions and brought two HSR compliance enforcement actions. Additionally, the FTC conducted workshops and issued reports to promote and educate businesses and consumers about the importance of competition. Finally, the FTC closed 37 merger and nonmerger investigations that it found not to threaten competition.
Ramirez also highlighted the importance of the FTC's relationships with foreign antitrust agencies to effectively coordinate cross-border investigations and work towards convergence on competition policies and best practices. To that end, Ramirez specifically pointed to the FTC's strengthened roles in:
  • The International Competition Network.
  • The competition groups in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
  • The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.
  • The Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.
Going forward, Ramirez emphasized the importance of increased globalization and staying abreast of marketplace changes and technological developments. To stay on top of these issues, the FTC will:
  • Conduct public meetings to gather cutting-edge technological information.
  • Continue to work with and support foreign antitrust authorities.
  • Regularly review and update its rules and guides to reflect changes in the marketplace.
Commissioner Joshua Wright made a separate statement in which he:
  • Highlighted the importance of the Bureau of Economics, particularly its provision of:
    • independent recommendations on the merits of both competition and consumer protection cases; and
    • rigorous economic analyses, including as to merger retrospectives and government regulations.
  • Reiterated his plea for the FTC to issue formal guidelines on Section 5 of the FTC Act.