Washington – The Computer & Communications Industry Association filed comments with the Federal Trade Commission Wednesday on the proposed changes to the Hart-Scott-Rodino (HSR) pre-merger notification process. Under the HSR, merging companies must submit notifications to the federal antitrust agencies about transactions over a particular size and wait for government review. This summer the FTC proposed significant changes to the merger notification process. In its comments filed today, CCIA cautioned that the proposed changes would be “unduly burdensome for businesses and will likely have a harmful impact on the overall economy.”
CCIA has advocated for a competitive tech industry for more than 50 years.
The following can be attributed to CCIA Vice President for Global Competition and Regulatory Policy Krisztian Katona:
“The proposed changes would significantly increase burdens on all merging parties, regardless of whether the notified transaction poses a competitive concern. The pre-merger notification regime works best when it serves as a screening mechanism to flag transactions that may harm competition instead of turning every potential merger into a three-alarm fire drill for regulatory scrutiny.”