The 2023 Merger Guidelines and the role of economics
Files
First author draft
Date
DOI
Authors
Salinger, Michael
Version
First author draft
OA Version
Citation
M. Salinger. "The 2023 Merger Guidelines and the Role of Economics" Review of Industrial Organization.
Abstract
Relying heavily on legal analysis, the 2023 Merger Guidelines argue for a fundamental shift in antitrust enforcement that places more emphasis on protecting competitors and less on protecting the beneficiaries of competition (in most cases, consumers). It is up to courts, not economists, to ascertain whether this interpretation of antitrust law is correct. But economists can and should analyze the likely economic effects. Evidence that antitrust enforcement has not prevented some markets from becoming overly concentrated justify the tightening of horizontal merger enforcement signaled by these guidelines. The treatment of vertical mergers ignores the economics of vertical mergers. These guidelines will further damage the reputation of the DOJ and FTC among competition policy enforcers in other countries.