By winning the US v. Bazaarvoice trial without showing that post-closing competitive effects in the nascent market it chose to attack had not, in fact, been harmful to consumers, the Justice Department’s success may have done more damage to antitrust law — and the appropriate role for government predictions of market development — than they ever intended.
When Google’s proposed acquisition of Motorola Mobility was announced in 2011, the business press focused mainly on the extension of Google’s core business from Internet search into hardware. But from a legal perspective, the treatment given the deal by competition authorities in the United States, the EU and China raises intriguing questions about the scope and objectives of merger policy in emerging technology markets.