Sen. Paul looks to limit FTC’s authority to enforce antitrust laws

Washington, D.C. headquarters of the Federal Trade Commission.
(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Pete Kasperowicz – Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) has introduced legislation that would limit the authority of the federal government to identify and block business activity it deems to be anti-competitive.

The Anti-Trust Freedom Act, S. 2269 (pdf), is a response to what Paul says is the overreach of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) as it seeks to enforce key antitrust laws — the Federal Trade Commission Act, the Sherman Act and the Clayton Act.

Paul argues that under these laws, the FTC has too much leeway to define what business activities are legal, as it can define “unfair methods of competition,” “markets” and “price discrimination.” This leeway has led the FTC to ban some activities that Paul believes should be permitted. more> http://is.gd/292Tey

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Lawmakers urge FTC to investigate ‘supercookies’

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By Brendan Sasso – Reps. Joe Barton (R-Texas) and Edward Markey (D-Mass.) urged the Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday to investigate “supercookies.”

The Wall Street Journal first reported last month that websites including MSN and Hulu were installing tools on users’ computers that continued to track their activities online even after traditional tracking files, known as “cookies,” were deleted.

In their letter to FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz, the lawmakers called supercookies “unacceptable.” more> http://tinyurl.com/6etxbrg

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