On 4 August 2020 the CMA cleared Amazon’s minority investment in Deliveroo after an in-depth Phase 2 investigation. The CMA was concerned that Amazon was a potential re-entrant into online restaurant delivery in the UK and that Deliveroo and Amazon might be close competitors in “online convenience groceries”. The CMA ultimately dismissed both theories of harm in particular because it considered that a minority investment would be unlikely to prevent Amazon from re-entering restaurant delivery if it otherwise had a strong commercial incentive to do so.
The politician and the judge: Implications for competition policy
Drawing on the historical evolution of antitrust policy, the authors argue that some increase in politicisation is likely an inevitable result of the expansion...