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Rep. Johnson's statement on the Justice Department's antitrust settlement with six prominent high-tech companies today

September 24, 2010

“As Chairman of the Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Courts and Competition Policy, I applaud Assistant Attorney General Christine Varney and the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice on their settlement with Adobe Systems Inc., Apple Inc., Google Inc., Intel Corp., Intuit Inc. and Pixar regarding agreements amongst competitors not to compete for employees. This action reminds all of us that competition policy is not just about the lowest prices for consumers – it is about protecting the competitive process, which also includes competing to innovate and competing to attract the best and the brightest, especially in the high-tech marketplace. The agreements challenged today not only harm competition, but they limit opportunities for workers, which would be unacceptable at any point but is especially odious given the current state of our economy.

My Subcommittee has held a series of hearings on “An Antitrust System for the 21st Century,” most recently looking at “Competition in the Evolving Digital Marketplace.” It is imperative that we ensure that the antitrust laws are working properly in the high-tech field, and today’s settlement suggests that the enforcement agencies are doing their jobs. I encourage them to remain vigilant in their efforts to police this evolving marketplace.”

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