ANTITRUST ANALYSIS OF JOINT VENTURES: AN OVERVIEW

Since last Spring, the Federal Trade Commission has been considering antitrust policy toward competitor collaboration, particularly in the form of joint ventures. Conduct falling within the apparent scope of the FTC's consideration is infinite in variety and diverse in its antitrust treatment. Rather than undertake the daunting task of compiling a complete road map to the antitrust analysis of all such conduct, this article sets out general principles for the analysis of joint ventures, broadly defined1 as entities that play a role in the marketplace in their own right2 and are owned or controlled3 by two or more persons (the joint venture's