Dutch watchdog pushes for stronger authority post-Microsoft ruling
The issue highlights the insufficiency of current regulatory frameworks to keep pace with modern corporate acquisitions.
The Dutch competition regulator, the Netherlands Authority of Consumers and Markets (ACM), has called for more authority to investigate corporate deals independently. This comes after the European Union’s antitrust regulators decided not to take action against Microsoft’s acquisition of AI startup Inflection’s staff.
The EU’s decision to not investigate further comes after the initial 7 Member states who complained about Microsoft sweeping up of Inflection’s staff, decided to drop their complaints, leaving the Commission with no decision in this matter.
ACM expressed concerns over potential negative impacts of such deals on Dutch consumers and businesses but lacks the power to fully assess or prevent market dominance in these cases. The regulator’s chairman, Martijn Snoep, emphasised the need for new investigative powers to better assess acquisitions and their effects.
ACM is pushing for the ability to refer acquisitions with broader European implications to the European Commission, enabling better oversight of deals that might otherwise go unexamined.