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Merger Policy in Digital Markets: An Ex Post Assessment†
Journal of Competition Law & Economics ( IF 1.176 ) Pub Date : 2020-07-21 , DOI: 10.1093/joclec/nhaa020
Elena Argentesi 1 , Paolo Buccirossi 2 , Emilio Calvano 3 , Tomaso Duso 4 , Alessia Marrazzo 5 , Salvatore Nava 2
Affiliation  

Abstract
This paper presents a broad retrospective evaluation of mergers and merger decisions in markets dominated by multisided digital platforms. First, we document almost 300 acquisitions carried out by three major tech companies—Amazon, Facebook, and Google—between 2008 and 2018. We cluster target companies on their area of economic activity providing suggestive evidence on the strategies behind these mergers. Second, we discuss the features of digital markets that create new challenges for competition policy. By using relevant case studies as illustrative examples, we discuss theories of harm that have been used or, alternatively, could have been formulated by authorities in these cases. Finally, we retrospectively examine two important merger cases, Facebook/Instagram and Google/Waze, providing a systematic assessment of the theories of harm considered by the UK competition authorities as well as evidence on the evolution of the market after the transactions were approved. We discuss whether the competition authority performed complete and careful analyses to foresee the competitive consequences of the investigated mergers and whether a more effective merger control regime can be achieved within the current legal framework.


中文翻译:

数字市场中的合并政策:事后评估†

摘要
本文对由多面数字平台主导的市场中的合并和合并决策进行了广泛的回顾性评估。首先,我们记录了2008年至2018年之间三大主要科技公司(亚马逊,Facebook和Google)进行的近300笔收购。我们将目标公司按其经济活动领域分类,为这些合并背后的战略提供了有启发性的证据。其次,我们讨论了数字市场的特征,这些特征为竞争政策带来了新的挑战。通过以相关案例研究为例,我们讨论了在这些案例中已经使用或可能由当局制定的伤害理论。最后,我们回顾了两个重要的合并案例,Facebook / Instagram和Google / Waze,提供对英国竞争管理机构考虑的损害理论的系统评估,以及交易批准后市场发展的证据。我们讨论了竞争管理机构是否进行了完整而仔细的分析,以预见被调查兼并的竞争后果,以及是否可以在当前法律框架内实现更有效的兼并控制制度。
更新日期:2020-07-21
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