5 - 3 2 4 -1 1 5
MAY 14, 2024
T E AC HI N G N OT E
Lina Khan at the FTC: Redefining Antitrust in the
Age of Big Tech
Case Synopsis
This case describes the important recent changes in antitrust enforcement in the digital economy. It
highlights a major departure from the traditional focus on consumer welfare and price effects to a more
complex approach that considers the various types of possible anticompetitive harm resulting from the
success of online platforms and data-driven markets. This change is illustrated by the Federal Trade
Commission’s (FTC) lawsuit against Amazon and the Department of Justice’s historic lawsuit against
Google. This litigation reflects a fundamental shift in the philosophy of antitrust enforcement under
FTC Chair Lina Khan.
The case offers students and Instructors the opportunity to critically assess the need for and
potential impact of Khan’s proposed antitrust reforms in the era of Big Tech. It invites consideration of
whether the existing antitrust framework is adequate for tackling the challenges posed by tech giants,
especially regarding issues like data privacy, network effects, and the fairness of online platforms. The
case is also an opportunity to compare US antitrust policies with those in the EU, China, and India, and
to assess the implications of these regulatory approaches for global competition, innovation, and
consumer rights. At the end of the discussion, students can discuss and take a position on whether the
US government is right or wrong in its recent antitrust charges against Google and Amazon.
Assignment
Lina Kahn at the FTC: Redefining Antitrust in the Age of Big Tech LCA
Learning Objectives
1. Teach students the basic principles of classic US anti-trust law for protecting customers
2. Show students how big tech challenges these basic principles
, 324-115 Teaching Note—Lina Khan at the FTC: Redefining Antitrust in the Age of Big Tech
3. Help students develop a global perspective on dealing with the big tech challenge
4. Encourage students to analyze, as “customers” of big tech, whether Google and Amazon have
violated US antitrust laws.
Takeaways
1. The importance of antitrust laws for protection of consumers and competition
2. The novel challenges that big tech poses for antitrust policy
3. The challenging issues regulators face in developing sound antitrust laws for big tech:
enabling big tech’s low-cost services while preventing market dominance, ensuring that
antitrust actions foster innovation and don’t hinder technological progress, and guaranteeing
consumer access to diverse digital services without excessive big tech control
4. Behind these challenges is a central question: How much should antitrust policy, in the US and
in other countries, focus on consumer welfare and how much should it focus the power of
dominant companies and their impact on society?
Assignment Questions
1. What are the main differences between the Chicago school consumer welfare standard for
antitrust and the common features of new Brandeis approach and antitrust approaches in the
EU, India, and China?
2. Does the rise of the tech sector require the new Brandeis approach? What are its advantages
and drawbacks – for customers, competition, and society?
3. Is the US government correct that Amazon and Google are violating US antitrust law?
Additional Materials for Class
None
Discussion Plan (In Brief)
1. Introduction (5 minutes)
2. What are the basic rationales of the classic and Chicago approaches to US anti-trust? (10)
3. What is distinctive about big tech for antitrust policy? (10)
4. Do the FTC under Lina Kahn and the EU, China, and India have a better approach to
antitrust policy for big tech? (20)
5. Should Google be found in violation of US antitrust law? (10)
6. Should Amazon be found in violation of US antitrust law? (10)
7. Student lessons from this case (10)
2
MAY 14, 2024
T E AC HI N G N OT E
Lina Khan at the FTC: Redefining Antitrust in the
Age of Big Tech
Case Synopsis
This case describes the important recent changes in antitrust enforcement in the digital economy. It
highlights a major departure from the traditional focus on consumer welfare and price effects to a more
complex approach that considers the various types of possible anticompetitive harm resulting from the
success of online platforms and data-driven markets. This change is illustrated by the Federal Trade
Commission’s (FTC) lawsuit against Amazon and the Department of Justice’s historic lawsuit against
Google. This litigation reflects a fundamental shift in the philosophy of antitrust enforcement under
FTC Chair Lina Khan.
The case offers students and Instructors the opportunity to critically assess the need for and
potential impact of Khan’s proposed antitrust reforms in the era of Big Tech. It invites consideration of
whether the existing antitrust framework is adequate for tackling the challenges posed by tech giants,
especially regarding issues like data privacy, network effects, and the fairness of online platforms. The
case is also an opportunity to compare US antitrust policies with those in the EU, China, and India, and
to assess the implications of these regulatory approaches for global competition, innovation, and
consumer rights. At the end of the discussion, students can discuss and take a position on whether the
US government is right or wrong in its recent antitrust charges against Google and Amazon.
Assignment
Lina Kahn at the FTC: Redefining Antitrust in the Age of Big Tech LCA
Learning Objectives
1. Teach students the basic principles of classic US anti-trust law for protecting customers
2. Show students how big tech challenges these basic principles
, 324-115 Teaching Note—Lina Khan at the FTC: Redefining Antitrust in the Age of Big Tech
3. Help students develop a global perspective on dealing with the big tech challenge
4. Encourage students to analyze, as “customers” of big tech, whether Google and Amazon have
violated US antitrust laws.
Takeaways
1. The importance of antitrust laws for protection of consumers and competition
2. The novel challenges that big tech poses for antitrust policy
3. The challenging issues regulators face in developing sound antitrust laws for big tech:
enabling big tech’s low-cost services while preventing market dominance, ensuring that
antitrust actions foster innovation and don’t hinder technological progress, and guaranteeing
consumer access to diverse digital services without excessive big tech control
4. Behind these challenges is a central question: How much should antitrust policy, in the US and
in other countries, focus on consumer welfare and how much should it focus the power of
dominant companies and their impact on society?
Assignment Questions
1. What are the main differences between the Chicago school consumer welfare standard for
antitrust and the common features of new Brandeis approach and antitrust approaches in the
EU, India, and China?
2. Does the rise of the tech sector require the new Brandeis approach? What are its advantages
and drawbacks – for customers, competition, and society?
3. Is the US government correct that Amazon and Google are violating US antitrust law?
Additional Materials for Class
None
Discussion Plan (In Brief)
1. Introduction (5 minutes)
2. What are the basic rationales of the classic and Chicago approaches to US anti-trust? (10)
3. What is distinctive about big tech for antitrust policy? (10)
4. Do the FTC under Lina Kahn and the EU, China, and India have a better approach to
antitrust policy for big tech? (20)
5. Should Google be found in violation of US antitrust law? (10)
6. Should Amazon be found in violation of US antitrust law? (10)
7. Student lessons from this case (10)
2
