The 2010 Horizontal Merger Guidelines After 10 Years

This paper introduces the Special Issue of the Review of Industrial Organization that studies the impact of the 2010 Horizontal Merger Guidelines after 10 years On August 19, 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) issued newly updated Horizontal Merger Guidelines (2010 Guidelines) [See https://www.ftc.gov/sites/default/files/attachments/merger-review/100819hmg.pdf .]. The 2010 Guidelines begin by stating: “These Guidelines outline the principal analytical techniques, practices, and the enforcement policy of the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (the “Agencies”) with respect to mergers and acquisitions involving actual or potential competitors (“horizontal mergers”) under the federal antitrust laws.” Since the first Merger Guidelines were issued by the DOJ 1968, the merger guidelines have been an important channel by which economic research and learning affects antitrust enforcement. Each iteration of the merger guidelines has reflected the economic thinking of the day. Each iteration also has made a substantial impact on merger enforcement and the development of antitrust law. This special issue examines the impact of the 2010 Merger Guidelines after 10 years.