Open Markets Hails DOJ Suit to Block Merger that Posed Threat to the Free Press and Free Expression
Washington, DC — Open Markets Institute strongly welcomes the decision by the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice to file suit to block Quad/Graphics Inc.’s proposed acquisition of LSC Communications Inc. as Open Markets and others demanded in a March letter.
“This suit by the DOJ is a victory for the free press, free expression, and democracy,” said Open Markets Executive Director Barry Lynn. “It’s a signal that our work, in coalition with others in the antimonopoly movement, is helping law enforcers to protect the fundamental liberties of America’s citizens. We hope the DOJ will continue to focus especially closely on any concentration of power that threatens the ability of America’s journalists, authors, editors, and publishers to do their work.”
Open Markets, the Authors Guild, and PEN America took the lead in outlining how this merger would make it much more expensive to print books and long-run magazines, including popular news and opinion magazines. In the letter to Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim, Open Markets, the Authors Guild and PEN wrote that the deal was a “straightforward merger to monopoly" and called on the DOJ to block the merger.
Additional information:
Open Markets, the Author’s Guild and PEN America’s letter to the DOJ