Abstract

Killer acquisitions in the digital field have attracted increasing attention because of their potential impact on competition and innovation. Large digital companies often use these practices to strengthen their dominant position by eliminating or weakening competing players.

Killer acquisitions in the digital market are an increasingly important issue in the field of competition and economic regulation. As the digital sector continues to grow rapidly, companies often seek to extend their market reach by acquiring potential competitors or innovative start-ups. However, some of these acquisitions may have predatory motives, aimed at eliminating competition, maintaining a monopoly, or hindering innovation.

The digital market is characterised by dominant players with considerable power and competitive advantages, such as huge user bases, massive data and considerable financial resources. In this context, killers acquisitions can be used as a strategic mean to strengthen this dominant position and drive out potential competitors.

Killer acquisitions can take different forms in the digital field. It can involve acquiring direct rivals to drive them out of the market, buying up innovative start-ups to neutralise their competitive impact, or acquiring key technologies or data to restrict market access. These practices raise major concerns about competition, innovation, consumer choice and data protection.

To address this challenge, competition authorities and digital regulators are seeking to strengthen their tools and approaches to detect, prevent and sanction killer acquisitions. The aim is to preserve a healthy competitive environment, foster innovation and ensure consumer welfare in the digital economy.

This study aims to investigate killer acquisitions in the digital market in depth,
analysing the effects of these associated anti-competitive practices and exploring possible
regulatory remedies and regulations.