Christopher H. Casey – The Artificial Intelligence Blog

December 20, 2023 by Duane Morris

Guidelines Discuss Role of Tech in Mergers

On December 18, 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jointly issued new Merger Guidelines. The new guidelines amend, update and replace the numerous versions of merger guidelines previously issued by both agencies.

Big tech platforms will likely continue to be in the agencies’ crosshairs, including by looking back or forward at smaller acquisitions that may enhance or extend dominant positions based on technology platforms or arguably eliminate potential competition.

Read the full Alert on the Duane Morris website.

July 21, 2023December 8, 2023 by Duane Morris

U.S. Antitrust Draft Guidelines Address Using AI in Mergers

On July 19, 2023, the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jointly released draft Merger Guidelines to amend and update both the 2010 Horizontal Merger Guidelines and the Vertical Merger Guidelines that were issued in 2020 and later rescinded by the FTC in 2021.

The draft guidelines underscore recent enforcement efforts to rein in technology mergers. They target large platform providers, as well as mergers that might entrench or extend a dominant position (suggesting that a 30 percent share implies a dominant position). The draft guidelines focus on multisided platforms and competition between platforms, on the platform and to displace a platform. The agencies also specifically reference the use of algorithms and artificial intelligence in assessing potential post-merger coordination. Read the full Alert on the Duane Morris website.