Description
In July 2021, President Joe Biden issued an executive order, “Promoting Competition in the American Economy,” which entails greater scrutiny of mergers, predominantly by internet platforms.
The acquisition of startups by larger tech companies has been ongoing in the entrepreneurial ecosystem, either to offload risks or simply because tech giants are too large to make a narrow opportunity a priority. These acquisitions, however, are now under scrutiny by the government in order to maintain fair economic competition.
In this seminar, USC faculty and experts in anti-trust and privacy laws discuss the legal and business challenges involving the acquisitions of startups by larger platforms. Panelists provide perspectives from venture capital, corporate venture capital, acquirers and founders.
The seminar features Milan Miric, assistant professor of data sciences and operations at USC Marshall School of Business; Tanisha James, partner and anti-trust/mergers and acquisitions advisor, Cooley; and Erik Rannala, co-founder and managing partner of Mucker Capital. This panel is moderated by D. Daniel Sokol, professor of law at USC Gould School of Law.
Who Will Benefit
– Young entrepreneurs who want to understand what the new regulation means for startups
– Policy makers seeking deeper insights on how new regulations will affect competition, business models and the economy as a whole
– Those looking uncover how the government is attempting to enforce fair competition through the executive order
About Our Featured Faculty
D. Daniel Sokol is a professor of law and business at USC Gould School of Law. He focuses his teaching on complex business issues from early-stage startups to large, multinational businesses and the issues that businesses face: antitrust, data breaches, corporate governance, compliance, innovation, M&A, collusion, technological transformation and global business regulation. He is a member of the American Law Institute. He also serves as academic advisor to the United States Chamber of Commerce and as a non-governmental Advisor to the International Competition Network. His work has appeared in a variety of journals: Strategic Management Journal, Journal of Law and Economics, Harvard Business Review, Sloan Management Review, Michigan Law Review and Northwestern Law Review, among others. Prior to joining USC, Sokol taught at the University of Florida. He also has taught, among other institutions, at the Catholic University of Chile, University of Melbourne, University of Haifa, University of Tokyo and Northwestern University.
Milan Miric is an assistant professor of data sciences and operations at USC Marshall School of Business. He joined the IS Group within the Data Sciences and Operations Department in 2016. His research tries to understand basic questions about how firms can capture and create value in digital industries. In particular, his research tries to understand how the unique structural features of digital industries (network effects, low costs of innovating, non-monetary motivations) influence the process by which firms capture and create value. His work is largely empirical combining large-scale panel datasets with interviews and field work. His research work draws heavily on insights from psychology, economics and sociology, but tries to contribute to the literature on information systems and innovation.