Antitrust

Jeff Bezos and Margrethe Vestager can get along

10 November 2020

The Amazon CEO may balk at charges from Europe’s antitrust tsar that his company distorts retail competition. Possible remedies, like sharing data or erecting internal firewalls, will hurt. Still, Vestager is trying to cope with Amazon’s dominance, not end it. That’s something.

Facebook-Instagram can open up instead of break up

2 November 2020

U.S. regulators are reviewing the 2012 social media merger. Unwinding deals years later is almost impossible. Busting up what exists today is one option. But forcing tech giants to make switching to rivals easier could be a more productive way to boost competition.

Health insurers put Google market power to shame

27 October 2020

Anthem, Humana and UnitedHealth stocks have outperformed the tech giant's parent Alphabet over the past decade. U.S. insurers benefit from near-monopolies in many regions. Americans have few choices among hospitals too. Maybe Big Health is a better antitrust target than Big Tech.

Big Tech M&A crackdown will help boring rivals

22 October 2020

Companies like Oracle and IBM will benefit if Congress proposes a presumptive ban on acquisitions by Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google. The giants have bought hundreds of firms in the last five years to aid growth. Deal limits may shake up lucrative sectors like cloud computing.

The Exchange: Terra incognita

13 October 2020

The U.S. faces more uncertainty as 2020 ends, including inflation, antitrust enforcement, and how the next president handles taxes, trade and the post-virus economy. So says Nathan Sheets, chief economist at PGIM Fixed Income. He argues tackling inequality should be a priority.

Big Tech broadside is bonanza for D.C. lobbyists

7 October 2020

A U.S. Congress report accuses Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google of abusing market power. Trustbusting recommendations include breakups and a merger ban. Any actual reforms will surely be heavily diluted, but the four giants now have a 450-page guide for their counterattacks.

Facebook will have to grow the hard way

16 September 2020

U.S. regulators may file an antitrust lawsuit against the $775 bln firm. The threat has a chilling effect on Facebook’s ability to snap up the next hot thing in social media. To keep up with changing tastes, Mark Zuckerberg is going to have to transform the company from within.

Tiffany bust-up risks double defeat for LVMH

9 September 2020

Bernard Arnault’s luxury giant delayed completing its $16 bln marriage with the U.S. jeweller, blaming iffy French trade concerns. Tiffany is suing for the deal to go ahead. Even if LVMH negotiates a discount, other targets like Moncler or Prada will be wary of future proposals.

“Fortnite” battle is the new TV blackout

14 August 2020

Owner Epic is suing Apple and Alphabet after the tech firms kicked the popular game out of stores. Like U.S. cable and network fights, the problem is a lock on distribution. There, battles are often public but end with small wins for content. Epic could expect the same.

Alstom can drive a hard bargain on Bombardier

10 August 2020

The French train maker hinted it will reassess an $8.2 bln buyout of its Canadian rival’s unit following surprise losses. A 20% price cut would allow CEO Henri Poupart-Lafarge to make an economic return. EU consent for a deal and Bombardier’s high debts strengthen his hand.

Tricky bidding war brews over LSE’s Italy bourse

31 July 2020

The London exchange may sell Borsa Italiana or the unit’s stake in the MTS bond trading platform to win EU approval for its $27 bln Refinitiv bid. Likely buyers Euronext and Deutsche Boerse would find themselves in a messy three-way tussle if Rome weighs in with a domestic bid.

Viewsroom: Silicon Valley spotlight

30 July 2020

The CEOs of Big Tech companies faced off against U.S. lawmakers during an antitrust hearing that raised new evidence about past acquisitions. Meanwhile, Japan’s Ootoya and Colowide engage in a food M&A fight. And: SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son’s next steps.

Big Tech bosses face hot air and hard truths

29 July 2020

Bosses of Apple, Amazon, Facebook and Google faced a predictable array of silly questions during their Washington hearing. But they also faced some pointed examples of their firms throwing their weight around. Cook, Bezos, Zuckerberg and Pichai have some self-examination to do.

Bezos’s D.C. delivery hangs on lawmaker wish lists

28 July 2020

Amazon’s CEO faces his first congressional hearing, joining peers from Apple, Google and Facebook who have sat in the hot seat before. Those grillings were mostly grandstanding by ill-prepared politicians. If they have upped their game, Bezos and Co face more of a challenge.

Google strengthens as U.S. antitrust case weakens

14 July 2020

The Justice Dept may soon make its case against the unit of Alphabet, which is back to its pre-pandemic $1 trillion market value. With 90% market share in some areas, Google is a legitimate target. But by mixing political and economic aims, the DOJ risks tripping itself up.

Competing interests blur M&A regulation

1 July 2020

The U.S. government wants to curb a big jump in Chapter 11 filings in May. Dealmaking would help on that front. But agencies are also issuing antitrust guidelines that may make tie-ups harder. Jobs are at stake either way. It’s a trade-off between bailouts and consumer harm.

Agnellis can win twice from EU auto merger probe

29 June 2020

Brussels is worried the union of Peugeot and Fiat, controlled by the Italian clan, will dominate van sales. High margins make it hard to justify outsized market share. Selling models to a smaller rival like Agnelli-backed CNH would boost competition and let the merger pass.

Europe’s latest Apple bite is close to the core

16 June 2020

The EU’s antitrust tzar Margrethe Vestager worries that the $1.5 trln group’s app store and payments product hurt competition. With smartphones at saturation point, such add-on services underpin Apple’s rosy valuation. Shareholders should be more worried than in past probes.

EU’s data harpoon won’t be last shot at Amazon

11 June 2020

The European Commission may soon charge Jeff Bezos’s company over the alleged use of data gathered from third-party sellers to unfairly compete against them. Antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager may well already be lining up the next salvo, perhaps targeting Amazon's advertising.

Complacency is as much a disruptor as antitrust

8 June 2020

Big Tech critics credit the 1969 push to break up IBM for spurring the today’s software industry. But it was as much Big Blue’s shortsightedness that led to others’ power. As probes of newer tech companies ramp up, Microsoft, with similar challenges, tells a more promising story.