- The US Department of Justice. It says that the HPE-Juniper agreement will cost the competition
- Companies say that the acquisition would give customers “greater innovation and choice”
- European and British researchers have already given their approval
The United States Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit to block the acquisition of HPE of Juniper Networks, an expected agreement that is worth $ 14 billion, after a complaint filed before a district court in the United States for the Northern District of California.
The complaint alleges that HPE and Juniper, currently the second and third largest supplier of WLAN solutions of business degree in the US., Would consolidate “more” of 70% of the market among them.
“This proposed acquisition risks substantially to competition in a technological market of critical importance,” says the letter.
The USA of the USA
The Department of Justice raises concerns about Chinese companies, which have been considered a threat to national security in recent years, resulting in less options for buyers. The merger would accentuate this: “Customers in the United States have fewer options than they would do if they were based abroad.”
The complaint continues: “It would significantly increase the concentration in a relevant market already consolidated for WLAN solutions of business degree.”
In addition, the DOJ highlights the previous competition between HPE and Juniper, which benefited customers through lower prices and more innovation. By becoming one, this rivalry, as expected, would stop.
HPE and Juniper are successful companies. But instead of continuing to compete as rivals in the WLAN market, they seek to consolidate it, increasing the concentration in an already concentrated market, “said the interim attached attorney general Omoed A. Assefi of the antimonopoolio division of the Department of Justice
In a joint statement, HPE and Juniper replied: “We will defend ourselves vigorously against the excessive interpretation of the Department of Justice of Antitatopoolium Laws and we will demonstrate how this transaction will provide customers with greater innovation and choice.”
Companies also claim that the DOJ’s statement that three companies dominate the market is “substantially disconnected from market realities”, and adds that the transaction has been approved by antitrust regulators in 14 jurisdictions, including the European Commission and CMA of Great Britain.
