Antitrust was my favorite course in law school. A subject matter comprised of only five federal laws — the Sherman (1890), Clayton (1914), FTC (1914), Robinson-Patman (1936) and Celler-Kefauver (1950) Acts — Antitrust can be boiled down in one elegant phrase: don’t be anticompetitive. Put in different terms, if by way of a superior product or a fortunate set of circumstances (or combination of both) you find yourself with an overwhelming marketshare (or, a “monopoly”), don’t be a dickhead. That’s really it. The rest is up to the courts to decide by using “totality of the circumstances”-like factual tests. Riveting stuff.
One common misconception in Antitrust law is that the mere presence of a monopoly (or, an “oligopoly,” which is when a handful of business comprise an overwhelming marketshare) is in and of itself anticompetitive and, as such, afoul of the aforementioned five federal laws. One quick glance at mobile operating systems (Android (74%) plus iOS (25%) equals oligopoly), search engines (Google makes up 93% of all internet searches) or professional sports (effectively, each of the Big Four own 100% of their markets) and the concept of “legal monopoly” becomes obvious. As long as these guys aren’t dickheads, their superior product (YouTube, depending on how you define the elasticity of their “market”) and/or fortuitous position in the world (disposable shaving razors) is protected.
Of all the lessons I learned in that class, one simple sentence stands out most, and that’s “when it comes to certain tech industries, competition is not in a particular market but for the market.” Due to network effects, externalities and other factors, this statement is obvious. Twitter and Instagram thrive not because they are great products, but because everyone is there. Google replaced Yahoo; Facebook did the same to MySpace, and MySpace to Friendster. Netscape lost to Explorer, and then Explorer to Chrome (at 70%, Chrome is not necessarily a Monopoly, but you get the point).
So, why did I launch this edition of HADOUKEN with a lesson in Antitrust? Only to explain why you are receiving an email from Substack as opposed to Tiny Letter. In short, I caved — everyone else is here! And while one would have incredible difficulty trying to label it as a monopoly no matter how you stretch the definition of the market in which it competes (I’d call it “mid-mass opt-in internet messaging,” which is, obviously, a very competitive market), I thought the analogy was appropriate. Plus, maybe some of you were actually eager to know my favorite class in law school. Unlikely, but you never know.
To my most attentive subscribers, you most certainly notice that I never released a Part II to my digital collectibles newsletter. In retrospect, I felt that I would not be able to expound upon the excellent primer to which I linked at the end of that article — to publish my thoughts would add nothing to what was already written. So I pivoted.
To wrap things up here, I will sign off with some spicy links for you to check out. As always, if you have any comments or suggestions about the newsletter (reinstate quarantine Office Hours, for instance!), holler at me!
Finally got off my ass and launched an Instagram for Staten Island Chess Club — it’s only been three years since I developed the concept…eek. Be on the lookout for further development (secret chess meet ups, merch and collaborative endeavors are lined up).
I know I’m in the minority here, but while Raf Simons’ inaugural collection for Prada is certainly a watershed moment in fashion history, the clothes were…kinda…meh.
The Daniel Arsham Porsche is far superior to Virgil Abloh’s Scion, I mean, G-Wagen.
I had a great chat with my friends at Highsnobiety and Nordstrom about how brands are creatively adapting to new realities thrust upon them by this global pandemic.
The surprise resurgence in popularity of 2018’s Among Us, an online multiplayer social deduction game, has actually caused its developers to scrap completing its sequel and simply focus on updating the original. Now that’s listening to your audience and giving them what they want — wish we could say the same for EA (should have stopped making new Madden games in 2005).
Ridley Scott directed the first two episodes of HBO’s new original series Raised by Wolves and they’re fantastic (or so they tell me, I haven’t been able to watch it yet).
Love it or hate it, the WSJ hit the nail on the head regarding the Ginsburg vacancy (and ironically, years ago, so too did Barack Obama).
A solid review of Tesla’s Battery Day.