The US FTC issues commentary on vertical merger enforcement explaining the approach to assessing the competitive effects of vertical mergers

On December 22, 2020, the US Federal Trade Commission (the “FTC”) issued a Commentary on Vertical Merger Enforcement. This follows the recent issuance of revised Vertical Merger Guidelines published jointly by the FTC and Department of Justice (the “Agencies”) on June 30, 2020. While the Guidelines explain the Agencies’ approach to assessing the competitive effects of vertical mergers, the Commentary builds on this base by using past cases to show how these principles are implemented by the Agencies in practice. The Commentary hews closely to the Guidelines and, like the Guidelines themselves, reflects a largely middle-of-the-road approach. In connection with the DOJ’s and FTC’s enforcement of Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which prohibits mergers that may substantially lessen