FTC and Department of Justice Issue Merger Challenges Data, Announce Upcoming Merger Enforcement Workshop

The Federal Trade Commission and the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) today issued a report summarizing merger challenges data for the two agencies for fiscal years 1999-2003, and announced that they will hold a joint workshop on merger enforcement in Washington, DC, on February 17-19, 2004.

The merger challenges data focuses on the agencies' merger enforcement decisions during the past five years, and contains tabulated market share and concentration levels associated with the FTC's and DOJ's decisions to challenge mergers in a wide range of product markets. The data tabulations use the two market share concentration statistics described in the agencies' Horizontal Merger Guidelines - the post-merger Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) and the change in the HHI - and reflect 173 mergers and 1,263 markets in total.

The agencies' announcement of the merger enforcement workshop presents the timing of the workshop, solicits comments from interested parties, and contains information on the specific topics to be addressed. The workshop will allow the Commission and DOJ to receive input on topics that arise in horizontal merger investigations including: Application of the Hypothetical Monopolist Test; Concentration and Market Shares; Firms that Participate Through a Supply Response: Uncommitted Entry; Coordinated Interaction; Unilateral Effects; Dynamic Competitive Analysis; Creation of Market Power on the Buying Side of the Market; Efficiencies; Non-Price Competition; and Integrated Analysis of Mergers.

Copies of the announcement of a workshop on merger enforcement, as well as the summary of merger challenges data for fiscal years 1999-2003, can be found on the Commission's Web site http://www.ftc.gov.

Copies of the announcement of a workshop on merger enforcement, as well as the summary of merger challenges data for fiscal years 1999-2003, can be found on the FTC's Web site as a link to this release. The Bureau of Competition seeks to prevent business practices that restrain competition. The Bureau carries out its mission by investigating alleged law violations and, when appropriate, recommending that the Commission take formal enforcement action. To notify the Bureau concerning particular business practices, call or write the Office of Policy and Evaluation, Room 394, Bureau of Competition, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Ave, N.W., Washington, DC 20580, Electronic Mail: antitrust@ftc.gov; Telephone (202) 326-3300. For more information on the laws that the FTC enforces, the Commission has published "Promoting Competition, Protecting Consumers: A Plain English Guide to Antitrust Laws," which can be accessed at http://www.ftc.gov/bc/compguide/index.htm.