Abstract

The author reviews the acquisition of the Italian TV channel Telemontecarlo by the leading Italian telecom operator, Telecom Italia, emphasizing its special interest in a three-fold respect: the increasingly relevant role of the courts, which tends to replicate the one characterizing them in the American system, in settling disputes which the legislature cannot easily control and solve; the conflict between the different agencies, along the uncertain boundaries separating antitrust from regulation; the antitrust review based on the definition of "future" markets, pertaining to services which the market does not yet offer. The analysis is also conducted through a comparison with the FTC and FCC treatment of the similar AOL-Time Warner merger.