Uncertainty and Two Theories of Harm in Nascent Competitor Acquisitions

There are two principal theories of harm in nascent competitor acquisition cases: (1) loss of future competition between the acquirer and the target, and (2) loss of innovation. I argue that the loss of future competition theory is most applicable in cases where there is a high probability of significant future competition between the merging parties, that competition is relatively imminent, and market evolution is relatively predictable. Conversely, the innovation effects theory is more suitabl