Just Eat/Hungryhouse merger referred for in-depth investigation
Just Eat’s acquisition of Hungryhouse has been referred for an in-depth merger investigation.
Earlier this month, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said that it would refer the deal for an in-depth investigation because of concerns that the merger could lead to worse terms for restaurants using either company. However, Just Eat was first given the chance to offer ways of addressing these concerns.
Just Eat has not offered these and so the merger will now be referred for an in-depth, known as phase 2, investigation by an independent group of CMA panel members. The deadline for the final decision is 2 November 2017.
Both companies provide online takeaway ordering services. These give restaurants the opportunity to reach a wide pool of people, as well as offer customers the convenience of choosing from a large range of takeaway providers in one place.
Following its initial investigation into the merger, the CMA has found that the companies are close competitors because of the similarity of their service and their broad geographical coverage.
Further information about the investigation will be published on the case page.