Netherlands: Announced ACM statement on call-in competence to investigate smaller acquisitions in relation to withdrawal of request for the European Commission to investigate Microsoft's acquisition of Inflection

On 19 September 2024, the Dutch Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) issued a statement on its withdrawal of its request for the European Commission to investigate Microsoft's acquisition of the AI startup Inflection due to a recent ruling by the European Court of Justice. The Illumina/Grail ruling, issued on 3 September 2024, determined that the European Commission can only handle such requests if the national authority is also competent to investigate the acquisition domestically, which was not the case for the ACM since the acquisition did not meet Dutch reporting thresholds. In particular, Microsoft's acquisition of Inflection, including staff and intellectual property, raised concerns about reduced competition and innovation in AI, particularly in the AI chatbot market. The ACM had feared that the acquisition could limit choices for Dutch consumers and businesses. The ACM is now advocating for new powers, so-called call-in competence, to investigate smaller acquisitions that don't meet reporting thresholds but could still negatively impact competition and innovation in the Netherlands. This would allow the ACM to assess such deals and, if necessary, refer them to the European Commission for further investigation.