Abstract:
Mergers involving online platform companies may generate innovation and consumer welfare. However, platform mergers raise concerns about the increasing market power of the merged platforms resulting from network effects and big data, particularly when these mergers take place in multiple jurisdictions. This article examines how cross-border mergers in ASEAN’s digital market should be assessed. The 2018 Grab–Uber merger in several ASEAN Member States (“AMSs”) is discussed to analyse merger control regulations in AMSs that reviewed the Grab–Uber merger differently. This article argues that ASEAN’s merger control regulations need to be harmonised.