House of Lords rules against extradition for price fixing
Ian Norris, the former senior executive of the engineering company Morgan Crucible, will not be extradited to the United States at this stage. The House of Lords ruled against the extradition request because price fixing was not a criminal offence in 1989–2000 when Norris allegedly participated in the price-fixing conspiracy. The House of Lords held that ‘agreements to fix prices, whether disclosed or not, have not been treated as in themselves dishonest’. The US Department of Justice has filed an additional charge claiming that Norris destroyed evidence and tried to obstruct justice, which may constitute an extraditable offence.
Price fixing in air-freight services—settlement reached with Lufthansa
A settlement of AUD$93 million has reportedly been reached in a price fixing case by US law firm Cohen, Milstein, Hausfeld & Toll with German airline Deutsche Lufthansa on behalf of customers who purchased air-freight shipping services from the airline. Deutsche Lufthansa was among more than 20 airlines named in the class action lawsuit. Others included British Airways, Air France and CargoLux.
Europe
European Commission clears Google to acquire DoubleClick
On 12 March 2008 the European Commission cleared the proposed acquisition of DoubleClick by Google after finding the AUD$3.3 billion deal would be unlikely to have harmful effects on consumers, either in ad serving or in intermediation in online advertising markets. The EC stated that the online advertising market is changing quickly enough and has enough competitors to ensure that the merged entity will not be able to shut out rivals. The US Federal Trade Commission gave its regulatory clearance in December 2007.
New Zealand
Telecommunications industry
On 31 March 2008 the New Zealand Government announced its approval of a legally binding undertaking proposed by the Telecom Corporation to split its operations into three separate units, which will effectively break up the company’s monopoly. Separation of Telecom into wholesale, retail and network units, along with government regulation to open its copper local loop network to rivals, is designed to foster competition, particularly in high-speed internet services.
On 11 March the New Zealand Commerce Commission recommended that the government not make mobile roaming services subject to price regulation. The NZCC has also proposed amendments to the terms of the national roaming services set out in the Telecommunications Act 2001 to facilitate new entry into the market.
United States
William Kovacic to chair Fair Trade Commission
The White House announced William Kovacic will succeed Deborah Platt Majoras as Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission. The appointment will take effect from 31 March 2008. Kovacic has served as a commissioner at the FTC since January 2006 and has previously held other positions within the FTC, including General Counsel.
Jail sentence for E-Rate fraud and bid-rigging
A former education consultant has been sentenced to seven-and-a-half years in prison for her part in rigging bids and fraud in relation to the E-Rate program in the US. To date, six companies and 12 individuals have pleaded guilty, been convicted or settled charges related to the E-Rate program. They have paid, or have agreed to pay, a total of AUD$44 million in fines and restitution. The E-Rate program is a Congress-backed initiative that provides funding to schools and libraries to help them get internet access by providing money for cabling, servers and service fees.
