#375 What's Up? Competition Enforcement Updates From Italy and Portugal
Release Date: 04/27/2026
#375 What's Up? Competition Enforcement Updates From Italy and Portugal
Our Curious Amalgam
What has competition enforcement looked like in Italy and Portugal over the past year? Saverio Valentino, Board Member of the Italian Antitrust Authority, joins Jaclyn Phillips to discuss AGCM's 2025 enforcement record, an ongoing digital sector investigation into Meta, and a whistleblower platform that has generated over 600 complaints since 2023. Next, Nuno Cunha Rodrigues, President of the Portuguese Competition Authority, speaks with Jeny Maier about a creative hospital merger remedy, AdC's research on AI and competition, and a consumer outreach initiative that took the authority beyond...
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#374 What if Robots Are Setting My Pay to Employees? Economic Tools To Avoid Compliance Pitfalls
Our Curious Amalgam
Algorithmic and AI-driven tools are increasingly shaping how employers set employee compensation. But how can employers avoid compliance pitfalls when use of these tools raises competition and other regulatory concerns? Economist Rose Healy joins Anora Wang and Subrata Bhattacharjee to discuss the legal and economic risks, as well as practical tools such as bias audits and event studies. Listen to this episode to learn how wage-setting algorithms are being used today—and what may lie ahead as these technologies evolve. With special guest: Rose Healy, Director, Resolution Economics Hosted...
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#373 What’s Up? Competition Enforcement Updates From Malaysia and Hong Kong
Our Curious Amalgam
What is happening in competition enforcement in Malaysia and Hong Kong? Iskandar Ismail, Chief Executive Officer of the Malaysia Competition Commission (MYCC), joins Anora Wang to discuss MYCC’s actions against bid-rigging, ongoing market reviews of the digital economy, and Malaysia’s broader plan to consolidate competition oversight over regulated sectors like energy, with phase one targeted for completion in 2026. Next, Teenie Yu, Of Counsel at the Hong Kong Competition Commission (HKCC), speaks with Anora on the HKCC’s landmark case against a bid-rigging syndicate in the building...
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#372 Can a Price Be Put on Harm? FTC Monetary Remedies and the Data-Driven Economy
Our Curious Amalgam
Five years after the Supreme Court’s AMG Capital Management decision limited the FTC’s ability to seek monetary remedies under Section 13(b) of the Federal Trade Commission Act, the agency continues to look for ways to obtain money in consumer protection and privacy cases through other authorities and theories. At the same time, it is grappling with how to define and measure consumer injuries and benefits in an increasingly data driven economy, including through its February 26 workshop on “Consumer Injuries and Benefits in the Data Driven Economy.” Hosts Lexi Michaud and Anora Wang...
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#371 Who Does Your Doctor Work For? Vertical Integration in the Healthcare Provider Market
Our Curious Amalgam
Hospitals, as well as insurers, have been increasingly purchasing physicians practices, home health providers, and nursing facilities. But what are the competitive implications of these acquisitions? Dr. Zack Cooper, economist and public health expert at Yale University, joins Derek Jackson and Anora Wang to discuss both the theoretical and empirical competitive harms and benefits to vertical integration in the healthcare provider market. Listen to this episode to learn more about the changing competitive landscape in this large and important sector of the economy. With special guest: Zack...
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#370 Is Any Deal Safe From Review in the EU? Implications of the “Towercast” Judgment
Our Curious Amalgam
M&A deals impacting the EU that are not caught by standard merger control thresholds can still be reviewed under general competition law rules. But how does this work? Frédéric Manin, lawyer at Advant Altana in Paris, joins Matthew Hall and James Hunsberger to discuss the implications of the 2023 European Court of Justice judgment in the "Towercast" case. Listen to this episode to learn more about the practical implications of this judgment for lawyers and dealmakers doing M&A that touches the EU. With special guest: Frédéric Manin, partner, Advant Altana Related Links: ...
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#369 Back To Form or Back to the Drawing Board? How To Navigate the Decision Vacating the New HSR Rules
Our Curious Amalgam
In February 2025, new rules for the pre-merger notification requirements in the U.S. came into effect. But will a February 2026 court decision undo these changes? Daniel Rosenthal, partner at Kirkland & Ellis, joins Jaclyn Phillips and Lexi Michaud to discuss a decision vacating the new rules, the subsequent appeal, and what might happen next. Listen to this episode to learn more about how to navigate merger filings in an uncertain time. (Since this episode was recorded, the Fifth Circuit denied the FTC’s motion to stay the decision vacating the new HSR Rules. On March 19, 2026,...
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#368 Mother, May I? The Use of Prior Approval Requirements in Merger Settlements
Our Curious Amalgam
Over the last few decades, prior approval requirements were considered an extraordinary remedy in merger settlements, yet their use has fluctuated in agency enforcement across recent administrations. Where do the FTC and DOJ stand in their current practice? Bilal Sayyed, a Counsel at the Cadwalader law firm, and antitrust professor and former FTC policy leader, speaks with Anora Wang and Jeny Maier about the role of prior approval provisions in modern merger enforcement and what their recent rise—and retreat—signals about agency policy. Listen to this episode to learn how prior approval...
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#367 How Do States Make Independent Judgment in Merger Review? The Tunney Act and HPE–Juniper
Our Curious Amalgam
States have become increasingly active participants in merger enforcement, often conducting independent analyses and, at times, intervening alongside federal agencies in high-profile cases. What goes into states’ analyses and decisions to intervene? Anthony Mariano, Chief of the Antitrust Division at the Massachusetts Office of the Attorney General, speaks with Lexi Michaud and Anora Wang about how states approach merger enforcement in parallel with the DOJ and FTC, the importance of independent state scrutiny, and, using the HPE–Juniper transaction to guide the discussion, how the Tunney...
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#366 What’s the State of Mini-HSR Regimes? Perspectives from the Colorado & Washington State AGs
Our Curious Amalgam
State attorneys general are taking a more active role in merger control, with Colorado and Washington leading the way on new “mini-HSR” notification regimes. What do these new state pre-merger filing laws require, and how should companies and practitioners navigate them alongside the federal Hart-Scott-Rodino Act? Assistant Attorneys General Paula Pera Czollak and Bryn Williams join hosts Puja Patel and James Hunsberger to discuss the origins of the Uniform Antitrust Pre-Merger Notification Act, lessons from the first months of filings in Colorado and Washington, key interpretive questions...
info_outlineWhat has competition enforcement looked like in Italy and Portugal over the past year? Saverio Valentino, Board Member of the Italian Antitrust Authority, joins Jaclyn Phillips to discuss AGCM's 2025 enforcement record, an ongoing digital sector investigation into Meta, and a whistleblower platform that has generated over 600 complaints since 2023. Next, Nuno Cunha Rodrigues, President of the Portuguese Competition Authority, speaks with Jeny Maier about a creative hospital merger remedy, AdC's research on AI and competition, and a consumer outreach initiative that took the authority beyond Lisbon. Listen to this episode to hear how two of Europe's most active competition agencies are approaching enforcement and advocacy in 2026.
With special guests:
Saverio Valentino, Board Member, AGCM (Italian Antitrust Authority) and Nuno Cunha Rodrigues, President, AdC (Portuguese Competition Authority)
Related Links:
Italian Antitrust Authority (AGCM)
Portuguese Competition Authority (AdC)
Hosted by:
Jaclyn Phillips, Proskauer Rose and Jeny Maier, Axinn, Veltrop & Harkrider