Word: ftc
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...holdings in Australia. Potential buyers must 1) be able to raise $1 billion, and 2) get approval of the Federal Trade Commission. If qualified, call Kennecott Copper Co. in New York City -and call collect. soon as the U.S.'s biggest copper company acquired Peabody in 1968, the FTC charged it with violation of a dubious antitrust law. That led to a formal FTC ruling in 1971 that Kennecott must get rid of Peabody. The order demanded a divestiture that ranks with the largest in American business history and expanded antitrust law to say, in effect, big mergers...
Kennecott fought the ruling unsuccessfully through the courts (the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the case) and even enlisted top politicians, labor leaders and economists to argue on its side. But nothing shook the FTC's resolve. Earlier this month, Kennecott lost what may very well be its last legal appeal when a federal court failed to reverse the order. Despite all the legal maneuvering, the copper company insists that it also has tried to find a way of giving up Peabody without inflicting financial harm upon itself, but the FTC wants it to try harder. The commission...
...airports. Needing ground transport, plane passengers account for about 70% of the $700 million in annual auto rentals. Last year however, the Federal Trade Commission charged that 96% of all airport car-rental income went to the three largest companies-Hertz, Avis and National -so the FTC sued the Big Three, accusing them of conspiring to freeze competitors out of airports. The Commission claimed that their rates were 10% to 40% higher than smaller firms...
Last week the companies settled the case without admitting any guilt. Each signed an FTC consent order in which it agreed not to indulge in any of the alleged antitrust practices. One clause forbids the collusive setting of auto-rental rates. Another bars any effort to persuade airport authorities to write into concession contracts requirements that smaller companies cannot meet...
Since the antitrust suit was filed, the Big Three have adjusted their prices to meet those of smaller competitors. In addition, FTC officials say, there has been a "fantastic" increase in the number of small car-rental companies that are winning concession rights in airports. Nonetheless, if the FTC finds reason to think that the Big Three are restricting competition at any time, it has a quick remedy. The new order includes a provision that forbids them to conspire to monopolize the business even outside airports-or face civil penalties of up to $10,000 per violation...