Gary Shapiro, president and CEO of the Consumer Electronics Association, wrote a piece for The Daily Caller describing how the federal government’s blocking of the AT&T, T-Mobile merger not only squashed innovation, but also sent capital abroad.

I would add to Mr. Shapiro’s observation that the Justice Department failed to properly apply the law to an evolving market. Describing the relevant product market as a market for mobile telephone service was way off. The relevant product market was broadband access services. Applying the law that way would have shown that even after the combination, there would have been a competitive market for broadband services. Antitrust laws need to change, and the agencies enforcing them need to adapt.