Shapiro To Return To Justice Department
3/12/2009
Washington – The Computer & Communications Industry Association is
praising the return of a top information economy and antitrust expert
to the Department of Justice. President Obama has appointed economist
Carl Shapiro to become the chief economist for the DOJ’s antitrust
division, according to various news reports. Shapiro served in the
Clinton administration, is the author of “Information Rules” (with Hal
Varian) and was an expert witness in the 1999 Microsoft antitrust case
while a professor at the Haas Business School at the University of
California in Berkeley.
The following comments can be attributed to CCIA President & CEO Ed Black:
“Shapiro is a leading authority on the economics of competition in the
information economy. This is a top-flight appointment by the Obama
administration and this expertise is just what the country needs now as
it looks for ways to turn the economy around.
“Innovation can boost the economy, but a lack of antitrust oversight
and badly needed intellectual property reforms can hold the information
technology sector back. Shapiro deeply understands the impact of
different types of corporate behavior on competition and what that
means for creating a business climate where the next YouTube or other
start up can make it. Shapiro also has done pioneering work on patents.
He has produced ground-breaking studies of emerging patent phenomena
such as ‘holdup,’ ‘thickets,’ ‘royalty stacking,’ and the uncertain
nature of patent rights. We welcome this appointment and look forward
to seeing how his expertise changes the climate of government, and
later, corporate behavior.”
Contact:
Heather Greenfield
202-783-0070 ext 113
Ed Black
202-783-0070 ext 110
