Antitrust Law Daily Wrap Up, WORTH NOTING—Other Antitrust and Trade Regulation developments, (Jan 29, 2016)
Organizations Mentioned:Gilead Sciences | Gilead Sciences, Inc.
A periodic roundup of other items of interest to the Antitrust and Trade Regulation community:
ANTITRUST NEWS: New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman is concerned with the setting of price floors on ticket resales in the concert and sports ticket industry, according to a report issued yesterday by his office: “Obstructed View: What’s Blocking New Yorkers from Getting Tickets.” Price floors are rules designed to prevent tickets from being sold at a price below some level, such as face value. The report notes two concerns with this practice: (1) buyers of tickets on Ticket Exchange or other sites with price floors are frequently not informed that the tickets are subject to a floor; and (2) the floors deprive the public of a chief benefit of the market-drive approach—lower prices. Other alleged restraints that exist in the market include delayed delivery of PDF versions of resold tickets and policies that place season ticket holders at risk of cancellation of their subscriptions when they sell on unofficial resale platforms.
STATE UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICES NEWS: Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey has sent a letter to pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, Inc., urging the company to reconsider its pricing structure for Sovaldi and Harvoni—the direct-acting antiretroviral drugs used to treat the Hepatitis C virus (HCV). The letter also informs Gilead that Healey’s office is considering whether Gilead’s pricing strategy may constitute an unfair trade practice in violation of Massachusetts law. Although most patients who have access to Sovaldi and Harvoni would have a 97 percent chance of a cure, as well as greatly reduced odds of liver cancer and early death, the retail price for Sovaldi and Harvoni is currently $84,000 and $94,500 per course of treatment, respectively, according to the letter. In other countries, Gilead sells Sovaldi for as low as $4 per pill, yet charges $1,000 per pill in the U.S., Healey wrote.
Companies: Gilead Sciences, Inc.
News: Antitrust StateUnfairTradePractices MassachusettsNews NewYorkNews