Consumers get forgotten in all the politics. The best way to protect consumers is to protect an open, competitive market process, in which companies succeed or fail based not on their political connections or ideological correctness, but on how well they serve consumers.
Antitrust regulation’s problems are structural and incurable. The Competitive Enterprise Institutes advocates abolishing antitrust law, removing remaining government monopolies, and preventing the creation of new ones.
Featured Posts
Blog
DOJ’s proposed antitrust remedies against Google are a bridge too far
In early August 2024, Judge Amit Mehta of the US District Court for the District of Columbia found that Google illegally maintained a search…
Blog
Trump’s deregulation shines, but tariffs and antitrust cloud the scene
The White House Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) this month released a new report on the Trump administration’s regulatory rollback efforts. Titled “The Economic…
Blog
Congress should overturn harmful anti-bank merger regulation
Yesterday, the Senate approved a resolution pursuant to the Congressional Review Act to overturn a regulation from the Biden administration that would sharply restrict…
Search Posts
Newsletter
Gun Rights, Spitzer’s Legal Legacy and Economic Stimulus
The Supreme Court prepares to hear a challenge to Washington, D.C.’s city-wide ban on handguns. New York Governor Eliot Spitzer officially resigns from office today…
News Release
Economic “Stimulus” Policies Trapped in the Past
Washington, D.C., February 21, 2008 — The economic stimulus package recently passed by Congress and signed by President Bush will do little to improve…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. HEALTHThe U.S. Department of Agriculture orders a recall of 143 million pounds of beef .CEI Expert…
News Release
Supreme Court Rulings Good for Investors
Washington, D.C., February 20, 2008—The Supreme Court this session has made two important decisions that will greatly benefit investors. Both today’s ruling in LaRue v.
News Release
CEI Files Comments on “Net Neutrality”
Washington, D.C., February 13, 2008—Today the Competitive Enterprise Institute filed public comments with the Federal Communications Commission, urging the commissioners not to regulate the…
News Release
Microsoft Could Go “Hostile” with Yahoo Offer
Washington, D.C., February 12, 2008—Yesterday, Microsoft announced that it “reserves the right to pursue all necessary steps” to present its buyout offer to Yahoo…
News Release
FTC Should Keep Mitts Off Microsoft-Yahoo Acquisition
Contact:Christine Hall , 202.331.2258 Washington, D.C., February 1, 2008— Microsoft announced today its offer to buy Yahoo! for $44 billion, a move that…
News Release
State of the Union: Last Chance for Bush
Washington, D.C., January 28, 2008—As President Bush prepares to deliver his last State of the Union address before Congress, both the White House…
News Release
Google-DoubleClick Deal Win-Win for Consumers
Washington, D.C., December 20, 2007―Today the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) approved Google’s acquisition of online advertising company DoubleClick, allowing the two to collaborate on…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS The Senate passes major energy legislation, including ethanol mandates and stricter fuel economy standards. CEI…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY Owners of iPhones sue Apple over alleged monopolistic behavior. CEI Expert Available to…
News Release
Google Critics Miss the Mark on Ad Deal
Op-Eds
The Frivolous iSuit
California resident Timothy Smith has sued Apple and AT&T over the iPhone, accusing them of illegal monopolistic behavior. The iPhone…
Op-Eds
Uncertain Antitrust Trajectory
The proposed XM/Sirius satellite merger — awaiting OKs from the Justice Department and Federal Communications Commission (FCC) — represents the antitrust establishment’s latest target……
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY Shareholders approve Sirius Satellite Radio’s acquisition of rival XM Satellite. CEI Expert Available to Comment: Vice President for…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> 1. CONGRESS Under pressure from activist groups, retail giant Target agrees to…
Op-Eds
This just in
Mark Allen’s "FCC should face reality" [guest commentary, Nov. 8] rightly points out the negative effects of the FCC’s media-ownership rules. One not…
Op-Eds
Economic Reality
Scott Cleland’s Sunday Commentary column, "Ultimate Internet gatekeeper?" described the potential Google acquisition of DoubleClick as a dire situation that would offer "no real…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY Senators grill Google on consumer privacy concerns connected to the planned buyout of online…
News Release
Congress Scrutinizes Google’s Latest Purchase
Washington, D.C., September 27, 2007—Google’s proposed buyout of online advertising company DoubleClick will be getting scrutinized today by members of the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Op-Eds
Europeans Use Antitrust to Thwart Competition
The European Union’s highly politicized business environment increasingly threatens competitiveness and consumer welfare across the continent. The Court of First Instance upheld…
News Release
Credit Union Deregulation Could Help Small Businesses
Washington, D.C., September 19, 2007—If Congress moves to de-regulate credit union business lending, it would help some selected categories of small businesses, according to…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. INTERNATIONAL Microsoft suffers a legal setback in Europe where it has been accused of anti-competitive practices.
Newsletter
Cooler Heads Digest
News Highlights Feel Good vs Do Good on the Climate John Tierney, NYTimes, 11 September 2007 Climate Figures…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT Danish scientist Bjørn Lomborg garners high-profile media attention for his new book, “Cool It:…
Op-Eds
Blackboard economics at FTC
Antitrust regulators are at it again. The Federal Trade Commission remains under the sway of what Nobel Prize-winner Ronald Coase referred to as “blackboard economists,”…
Blog
Partnership or Payola?
Geeks get technology, but they don't always understand economics. John C. Dvorak, one of the brightest journalists in tech, has recognized many of the important…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. BUSINESS The Federal Trade Commission tries to block the merger of the Whole Foods and…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONSUMER Prices for basic foodstuffs are rising sharply, driven in part by the use of corn…
Newsletter
CEI Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. BUSINESS Supermarket chain Whole Foods pursues a buyout bid for rival Wild Oats Markets. CEI…
News Release
XM-Sirius Merger Should Go Forward
Washington, D.C., July 9, 2007—The proposed merger of satellite radio companies XM and Sirius should be cleared by the Federal Communications Commission, according to…
Comment
Comments submitted to the Federal Communications Commission in the matter of XM Satellite Radio Holdings and Sirius Satellite Ra
Comments of the Competitive Enterprise Institute Contents…
Study
Why Price Gouging Doesn’t Exist
Full Document Available in PDF One Sunday in 2005, soon after…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Issues in the News 1. MEDIA…
News Release
Net Neutrality Fight Continues Today
Washington , D.C., April 26, 2007—So-called “Net Neutrality” advocates today commemorate one year of organized advocacy of legislation to regulate broadband network speeds. The…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENERGY The Senate Finance Committee holds a hearing on energy policy titled “ Coal:…
News Release
FCC Should Approve the XM-Sirius Satellite Radio Merger
Contact: Richard Morrison, 202.331.2273 Washington, D.C., April 17, 2007—Today, as the…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. REGULATION Maryland lawmakers approve a statewide ban on smoking in bars and restaurants.
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
1. ENVIRONMENT The United Nations prepares to officially release its latest report on the predicted effects of global warming. CEI Experts Available to Comment: Senior…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT William F. Buckley compares the attitude towards global warming skeptics to the Inquisition.
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. LEGAL The U.S. Supreme Court rules against the EPA’s decision not to regulate carbon dioxide…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS The House of Representatives approves changes to union organizing rules. CEI Expert Available to…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TRADE President Bush plans to ask Congress to grant him renewed “fast track” authority to…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. LEGAL Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal investigates denial-of-coverage complaints against major insurance companies.
News Release
“Terrible Ten” State Attorneys General Profiled in New Study
Contact: Christine Hall, 202.331.2258 Washington, D.C., January 24, 2007—A new CEI study of abuse of power by state attorneys general singles out…
News Release
Bush Energy Policy Fails Taxpayers and Consumers
<?xml:namespace prefix = v ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml” /><?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” />…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News TECHNOLOGY Microsoft announces it will release its newest operating system, Windows Vista, on January 30th. CEI Expert…
Op-Eds
The High Cost of Low Price
Should free market advocates oppose a plan aimed at lowering prescription drug costs? Generally, no. But, when such a plan involves the flexing…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS Democrats unveil new energy legislation. CEI Expert…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS New Democratic congressmen warn Speaker Pelosi to stick to a politically moderate…
Letters
We oppose negotiations on Medicare Part D drug prices
We are deeply concerned about proposed legislation that would lead to negotiation of pharmaceutical prices by the federal government for the new Medicare Part…
Study
A Free Market Agenda for the 110th Congress
Washington, D.C., January 10, 2007—Today the Competitive Enterprise Institute releases its policy recommendations for the new leadership on Capitol Hill: This Liberal Congress Went to…
Study
This Liberal Congress Went to Market: a Bipartisan Policy Agenda for the 110th Congress
DO…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS The House of Representatives meets today to debate an increase in the…
News Release
A Free Market Agenda for the 110th Congress
Contact: Richard Morrison, 202.331.2273 Washington, D.C., January 10, 2007—Today the Competitive Enterprise Institute releases its policy recommendations for the new leadership…
Op-Eds
Big Labor’s Agenda for the 110th Congress, Part I: The Minimum Wage
This month the first session of the 110th Congress begins with Democrats in control of both chambers for the first time since 1994. Control…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CONGRESS Democratic leaders in Congress begin work on their first 100 hour agenda.
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Issues in the News 1.
Op-Eds
Democrats: There Is Such a Thing as Too Much Regulation
As Democrats take power in Congress, speculation has swirled around the question of why Republicans lost. But there is a factor – a…
News Release
District Smoking Ban Threatens Economic Liberty
Contact: Christine Hall, (202) 331-2258 Washington, D.C., January 2, 2007 – The District of Columbia today became the newest city in…
News Release
FDA Makes Right Decision on Cloned Milk and Meat
Contact: Christine Hall, 202-331-2258 Washington, D.C., December 28, 2006—The Competitive Enterprise Institute applauds the Food and Drug Administration for releasing its long-awaited Risk Assessment on…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. HEALTH British medical journal The Lancet estimates that as many as 62 million people could die…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News FINANCIAL REGULATION A U.S. District Court hears arguments in the Competitive Enterprise Institute and Free Enterprise Fund’s…
Op-Eds
Bad Politics at a Minimum
It's a cliche of politics that the name of a proposed bill or initiative depends largely on its name. (More on this later.)It's…
News Release
U.S. District Court to Hear Landmark Sarbanes-Oxley Case
MEDIA ADVISORY <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Contact: <?xml:namespace prefix = st1…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. SCIENCE Researchers suggest a link between climate change and increased rates of malaria infection…
Op-Eds
Only You
Nearly 7 million copies of Time magazine's annual “Person of the Year” issue are set to arrive in mailboxes and on newsstands in…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY Big technology companies lobby Washington for data privacy legislation. CEI Experts Available…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. HEALTH A new study finds Americans are unsure about the safety of biotech foods.
Op-Eds
Time for a virtual games Declaration of Independence
Some say online virtual reality operations like “Second Life” have attained the stage of evolution that blogging and the Net itself occupied several…
Op-Eds
Proposed trans fat ban based on a lot of junk science
Dear Chicago Restaurantgoer: Ald. Ed Burke (14th) proposed last July that the Chicago City Council ban restaurants from serving foods made with vegetable oils…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. INTERNATIONAL The European Union approves a new law, known as “REACH,” regulating the manufacture…
News Release
U.S. Businesses, Consumers to Feel Effects of Massive European Chemical Regulations
Contact: <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> Richard Morrison, 202.331.2273 Washington, D.C., December…
News Release
SEC Drops the Ball on Sarbanes-Oxley
Contact: Richard Morrison, 202.331.2273 Washington, D.C., December 13, 2006—The Competitive Enterprise Institute today criticized the Securities and Exchange Commission for failing to provide meaningful…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. HEALTH The Food and Drug Administration announces a plan to speed up access to…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY Tech companies lobby for federal data privacy regulation. CEI Expert Available to Comment: Vice President…
Op-Eds
New York City Bans Science
The New York City Board of Health this week banned the use of trans fats by restaurants. The decision is directly traceable back to…
Op-Eds
Freedom Fighter
The war to advance economic liberty will last forever. The effort is frustrating and often discouraging. Many freedom fighters burn out, retire from the field,…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY NASA plans a taxpayer-funded moon base to be developed by the year 2020.
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. POLITICS The Wall Street Journal editorializes on the efforts of two U.S. Senators to pressure ExxonMobil…
Op-Eds
Unleash the media
With a stop-off in Nashville on Dec. 11, the Federal Communications Commission continues a series of hearings debating government's role in determining the…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. BUSINESS A new report recommends easing the regulatory burden on Wall Street. CEI…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. ENVIRONMENT Scientists record the quietest hurricane season in 10 years, confounding alarmist…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. CULTURE The politically-loaded film Fast Food Nation hits movie theaters. CEI Expert Available…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
1. ECONOMICS Legendary economist Milton Friedman dies at age 94. CEI Expert Available to Comment: President Fred L. Smith,…
Op-Eds
Friedman’s Legacy
Though I never met him, Milton Friedman, who has died aged 94, was one of the earliest influences on my political development. In…
Op-Eds
Junk Cinema
Fast Food Nation kicks off with a suit-clad fast food chain boss telling one of his executives to investigate a meat packing plant rumored to…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. BUSINESS Wall Street firms prepare to calculate the costs imposed by financial regulations like…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. BUSINESS Wal-Mart plans a price-cutting blitz for the holiday shopping season. CEI Expert…
Op-Eds
The Unboring Pundit
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = “urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office” /> John Tierney's Tuesday column began innocently enough. He…
News Release
Election Wins for Sarbanes-Oxley Reform
Washington, D.C., November 14, 2006—Reform of the onerous Sarbanes-Oxley accounting mandates was a winning issue for Democratic and Republican candidates in the election of 2006,…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. BUSINESS Representatives of corporate America convene in New York to talk about “social responsibility.”…
Op-Eds
Lifestyles of the Ethical Consumer
Recently, the celebrity gossip blog, DMZ, took a swipe at celebrities “who claim they’re green, but guzzle gas”. George Clooney, among others,…
Op-Eds
Trans Fat Hysteria Could Be Lawsuit Bonanza
The takeover of Congress by Democrats could result in a big payday for trial lawyers at the expense of the feckless food industry.
Op-Eds
Gambling with freedom
Your after-tax income belongs to you. You are free to spend it, invest it, waste it, burn it, or tithe it away—and none of…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. POLITICS Democrats win control of the House of Representatives. CEI Expert Available…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY Verizon and YouTube near a deal to bring web videos to cell…
News Release
Are Republicans and Democrats Really That Different?
Contact: Richard Morrison, 202.331.2273…
Newsletter
The Competitive Enterprise Institute Daily Update
Issues in the News 1. TECHNOLOGY International negotiators continue to spar over the future of Internet governance. CEI…
Staff & Scholars
Richard Morrison
Senior Fellow
- Antitrust
- Business and Government
- Capitalism and Free Enterprise
Iain Murray
Vice President for Strategy and Senior Fellow
- Banking and Finance
- Trade and International
Clyde Wayne Crews
Fred L. Smith Fellow in Regulatory Studies
- Business and Government
- Consumer Freedom
- Deregulation
Ryan Young
Senior Economist
- Antitrust
- Business and Government
- Regulatory Reform
Jessica Melugin
Director of the Center for Technology & Innovation
- Antitrust
- Innovation
- Media, Speech and Internet Freedoms
Alex Reinauer
Research Fellow
- Antitrust
- Innovation
- Tech and Telecom