Facebook’s acquisition of US customer service startup Kustomer may hurt competition and boost its market power in online advertising, European Union antitrust regulators warned on Monday, August 2, as they opened a full-scale investigation into the deal.
The move by the European Commission comes amid regulatory concerns on both sides of the Atlantic that a buying spree of startups by big firms, which normally don’t trigger competition scrutiny because of the low value of the deal, may be so-called killer acquisitions aimed at closing down nascent rivals.
Facebook, the world’s largest social network, announced the purchase of Kustomer to scale up its instant messaging app WhatsApp in November last year.
The EU executive, which acts as the bloc’s competition enforcer, said the deal may result in Facebook blocking rivals’ access to its units WhatsApp, Messenger, or Instagram, which are key to customer relationship management (CRM) software.
Kustomer sells CRM software to businesses so they can communicate with consumers by phone, email, text messages, WhatsApp, Instagram, and other channels.
Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.
Featured News
FTC Urged to Enforce Rarely Used Antitrust Law Against Retail Giants
Mar 28, 2024 by
CPI
UK’s Fingleton Bolsters Team with New Additions
Mar 28, 2024 by
CPI
Britain’s Competition Regulator Clears Aviva’s Acquisition of AIG Life UK
Mar 28, 2024 by
CPI
White House Implements New AI Safeguards to Protect Rights and Safety
Mar 28, 2024 by
CPI
Denver Court Sets August Date for Kroger-Albertsons Merger Showdown
Mar 28, 2024 by
CPI
Antitrust Mix by CPI
Antitrust Chronicle® – Real Estate & Antitrust
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Systematic National Evidence of Steering by Real Estate Agents
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Compliance Now! Actionable Antitrust Advice for the Residential Real Estate Industry
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
Real Estate Commissions: Some Insights from the Economics of Multi-Sided Platforms
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI
New Ideas for Promoting Real Estate Brokerage Price Competition
Mar 27, 2024 by
CPI