The Antitrust Week In Review

Here are some of the developments in antitrust news this past week that we found interesting and are following.

Dow, DuPont Set $130 Billion Megamerger, Could Spark More Deals.  Chemical giants DuPont and Dow Chemical Co have agreed to combine in an all-stock merger valued at $130 billion in a first step toward breaking up into three separate businesses, a move that pleased activist investors and could trigger more consolidation.  A Wells Fargo analyst dubbed this proposed combination of two of the biggest and oldest U.S. chemical producers the “deal of three centuries.”  However, analysts think the deal is likely to face intense regulatory scrutiny, especially with respect to the combination of the companies’ agricultural businesses, which sell seeds and crop protection chemicals, including insecticides and pesticides.

Qualcomm is Accused of Violating Antitrust Rules in Europe.  The European Commission has filed antitrust charges against the chip maker Qualcomm, the latest in a growing number of competition investigations targeting American technology companies.  Europe’s antitrust officials accuse Qualcomm, one of the world’s largest makers of chips, of abusing its dominant market position in the region by offering financial incentives to smartphone and tablet manufacturers that agreed to buy equipment solely from Qualcomm.  The company’s chips are widely used in smartphones and other mobile devices.

Judge Restores U.S. Airways’ Damages Claims in Sabre Antitrust Case.  A federal judge has restored US Airways Inc’s ability to seek about $210 million of damages in its antitrust lawsuit accusing Sabre Corp of inflating booking fees, even after the carrier had waived damages exceeding a mere $20.  Saying the case mattered to consumers hoping to keep down the cost of flying, U.S. District Judge Lorna Schofield in Manhattan said “the interest of justice would be best served” by letting US Airways, now part of American Airlines Group Inc, seek meaningful, rather than nominal, damages.  US Airways alleges that Sabre charged inflated fees and suppressed competition, impeding travel agents and others from using cheaper alternative means to book seats.

GE Scraps $3.3 Billion Appliance Unit Sale to Electrolux.  GE has scrapped a $3.3 billion plan to sell its home appliance business to the Swedish company Electrolux, a deal opposed by U.S. regulators over antitrust concerns.  Electrolux is the world’s second-biggest home appliance maker after U.S. rival Whirlpool.  It sells most of its products in the U.S. under the Frigidaire brand.  The U.S. Department of Justice was suing to stop the deal, claiming that it would have eliminated a major competitor and left Electrolux and Whirlpool as the only big companies in the U.S. selling cooking appliances such as ovens and ranges.