Nicolas Petit @competitionprof.bsky.social · 25/04/2025The antitrust cases in @FTC v Meta and US v Google are strong examples of a phenomenon known in economics as 'time inconsistency'. What seems like efficient correction today may lead to unintended economic distortions tomorrow. A thread 🧵1/n. 220
Nicolas Petit @competitionprof.bsky.social · 25/04/2025In hindsight, criticizing Meta for its acquisition of Instagram/WhatsApp or Google for its integration of Chrome or Android feels right. Now, assuming present evidence shows that they were false negatives, should antitrust revise past decisions? The econ answer: not so fast 2/n 100
Nicolas Petit @competitionprof.bsky.social · 25/04/2025Antitrust law, especially merger policy, is rule-based. Once a transaction is cleared, it’s presumed final. That rule creates credibility and predictability. Using discretion to revise past approvals introduces a classic time inconsistency problem 3/n 100
