Fun fact: Costco and Walmart surface their lenses on equipment made by Essilor (Satisloh subsidiary). Also if you're buying "transitions" branded photochromatic lenses - that's Essilor too.

If EssilorLuxottica was an American company the EU would have fined them a few billion dollars, and split them up a long time ago.

Why? Which American companies did the EU split up? There was an article in the Economist this week criticising the US for fines levied on foreign businesses for misdeeds elsewhere: https://www.economist.com/leaders/2019/01/19/the-trouble-wit...

It's a recurring theme in HN discussions about fines that all the Americans think the evil EU is unfairly fining fine American companies, and all the Europeans think the evil Americans are unfairly fining their countries' fine companies :)

I was wondering why the US hasn’t gone after Luxottica, and I’m guessing that’s the answer: US crackdown on Lux will lead to retaliatory action by EU.

The US rarely cares about antitrust action anymore. Otherwise a lot of American companies would be sweating bullets right now.

The US however slaps huge fines on foreign companies for breaching sanctions or bribery of foreign officials.

Who cares? EU is already going after American companies.

I'm sure there are very few manufacturers of quality lens-making equipment.

On the other hand my latest glasses where neither lenses nor frame come from E-L cost an arm and a leg, too.