Announced Action for April 28, 2004

Bureaus of Competition and Economics release model retail Second Request: The Commission’s Bureau of Competition and Bureau of Economics have drafted a Model Request for Additional Information and Documentary Material (Second Request) for transactions involving retail industries. This model is based upon prior Second Requests issued for retail transactions. The model has been modified from prior retail Second Requests to eliminate some information that may not have been essential to the Bureaus’ review of such transactions, and to include additional information that will aid in the future review of these transactions.

The release of this model Second Request should provide greater transparency to parties concerning the Commission’s review of transactions in this industry. The Bureaus intend to use the model as a basis for drafting future retail second requests, although the Bureaus will modify the model to the extent necessary to review specific issues raised by a particular transaction. The Bureaus also expect to release additional model Second Requests for other industries over the next several months.

Individuals with questions about the model retail Second Request may contact Cathy Moscatelli, Deputy Assistant Director, Bureau of Competition, at 202-326-2749.

Copies of the documents mentioned in this release are available from the FTC’s Web site at http://www.ftc.gov and also from the FTC’s Consumer Response Center, Room 130, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20580. Call toll-free: 1-877-FTC-HELP.