In several recent transactions, the CMA only got involved some months after U.S. review does give the UK watchdog more time to decide whether to formally investigate the deal. Some third parties have complained to DOJ that the transaction could have exactly that effect.īut even if the CMA is considering calling in the merger-the authority’s jurisdictional reach is notorious-the merging parties’ relatively limited presence in the UK make establishing a viable theory of foreclosure harm all the more challenging. That theory of harm has drawn scrutiny from DOJ, where agency staff attorneys in the days leading up to the February 16 second request evaluated the merging parties’ respective market positions, and whether the deal would give Salesforce the ability and incentive to degrade competitors’ integrations with Slack in order to benefit its own market-leading CRM suite. Those market shares could mean that the deal would create less risk of post-merger foreclosure in the UK than it might in the U.S. There, the authority estimated that Salesforce commanded just a 10-20% share of supply in UK’s CRM market-less than its 20-30% share on a worldwide basis.

The CMA recognized that dynamic in a 2019 decision approving Salesforce’s acquisition of Tableau Software. Salesforce, meanwhile, also controls a relatively small share of the UK CRM software market.

In attempting to assuage the authority’s potential concerns, Salesforce can argue Slack has only a minor presence in the UK, deriving most of its revenue across the pond. The CMA is viewed as much more aggressive than its continental and U.S. Successfully bypassing a CMA investigation would be a further boon for Salesforce after the company earlier this week secured quick-fire competition clearances in Germany and Austria for the Slack tie-up.

The San Francisco-based customer relationship management (CRM) company is said to have engaged closely with the CMA and told the UK watchdog that it shouldn’t review the deal because it doesn’t meet the test for establishing the enforcer’s jurisdiction, and even if it did, there’s no reason to suspect the merger would harm competition. DOJ’s recent decision to open an in-depth, second request review into the transaction. Salesforce (CRM) is said to remain confident of avoiding a UK Competition and Markets Authority probe into its planned $27.7 billion acquisition of messaging platform Slack (WORK) despite the U.S.

Slack acquisition price