Law360: Chilling Tech M&A Could Hurt Competition

June 23, 2020

O’Melveny counsel Sergei Zaslavsky authored this article discussing topics at the intersection of technology, M&A, and antitrust. “Big Tech has changed our society in many profound ways. One characteristic of large technology companies is the combination of resources, energy and creativity that enable entry into new markets, where big tech firms may challenge either rival technology companies or more traditional incumbents,” Zaslavsky wrote. “Just a handful of examples: Facebook recently announced its foray into e-commerce by launching the Shops feature; 15 years after its purchase of Android, Google again is trying to use an acquisition to challenge Apple in an emerging personal device space — fitness wearables; Amazon entered the pharmacy space with its 2018 acquisition of online pharmacy PillPack. Big Tech’s nimbleness in entering new spaces creates competition; even the mere specter of potential entry can impose a competitive constraint on incumbent firms. M&A contributes substantially to this nimbleness, and it is important to keep that in mind when considering policies that may deter M&A.”

Law360 subscribers can read the full article here.