- US DOJ says HPE-Juniper Deal comes at the price of competition
- Companies say that acquisition would give customers “greater innovation and choices”
- European and British investigators have already given their approval
The US Department of Justice has brought a lawsuit to block HPE’s acquisition of EinerNetwork – an agreement that is expected to be worth $ 14 billion – after a complaint filed to a US district court for the northern California district.
The complaint claims that HPE and Juniper, currently the second and third largest providers of corporate quality WLAN solutions in the United States, would consolidate “well over” 70% of the market between them.
“This proposed acquisition risks significantly reducing competition in a critically important technology market,” says the letter.
US doj wants to block HPE/Juniper Fusion
The Ministry of Justice raises concerns for Chinese companies that have been considered a threat to national security in recent years, resulting in fewer choices for buyers. The merger would highlight this: “Customers in the US have fewer options than they would if they were based abroad.”
The complaint continues: “It would significantly increase concentration in an already consolidated relevant market for WLAN solutions in business quality.”
In addition, DOJ highlights previous competition between HPE and Juniper, which benefits customers through lower prices and more innovation. By becoming one, this rivalry, surprisingly, would stop.
HPE and Juniper are successful companies. But rather than continuing to compete as rivals in the WLAN market, they are trying to consolidate – increased concentration in an already concentrated market, ”said acting assistant court lawyer Omeed A. Assefi of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division
In a joint statement, HPE and Juniper replied: “We will strongly defend against the Department of Justice’s overreaching interpretation of antitrustlove and will demonstrate how this transaction will give customers greater innovation and choices.”
Companies also claim DOJ’s statement that three companies dominate the market is “significantly interrupted from the market’s realities”, adding that the transaction is approved by anti -rut regulators in 14 jurisdictions, including the Europe Commission and Britain’s CMA.
