EI News and Notes

Settlement in Automotive Lighting Litigation

Taiwanese aftermarket replacement automotive lighting manufacturer TYC Brother Industrial Co. Ltd. and its U.S. distributor Genera settled with the direct purchaser class to exit multidistrict price-fixing litigation. They were the last defendants to settle in the litigation. Plaintiffs alleged that four overseas manufacturers of auto lights and their distributors fixed prices on 5,500 products for seven years. William C. Myslinski was retained as damages expert for TYC and Genera. He was assisted by Michael G. Baumann and Allison I. Holt. TYC and Genera were represented by the law firm of Morgan Lewis & Bockius.

Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health System’s Economic Contributions Studied

A report prepared by David A. Argue, Lona Fowdur and Caroline S. Hanson shows that Dartmouth-Hitchcock Health System contributed $2.1 billion and 16,000 jobs to the New Hampshire economy in 2011. This contribution is equivalent to 1.7 times the system’s actual revenues and 1.8 times its employment. The analysis relies on an Input-Output model to track linkages that connect the system to other industries that support its production. The report also assesses supplemental activities that Dartmouth-Hitchcock undertakes to fulfill its core mission and that provide additional benefits.

Study of Copyright Industries

The International Intellectual Property Alliance recently released Copyright Industries in the U.S. Economy: The 2013 Report, which was prepared by Stephen E. Siwek of EI. This study updated 13 previous studies, which Mr. Siwek also helped prepare. In 2012 the core copyright industries added over $1 trillion in value to the U.S. economy, accounting for almost 6.5% of the total U.S. Gross Domestic Product. Those industries employed nearly 5.4 million U.S. workers, nearly 5% of total private employment, and grew at an annual rate of 4.7%, more than twice the rate of growth of the U.S. economy.