Mergers & Antitrust

We apply our expertise in consumer behavior and marketing research techniques to address questions that arise in antitrust and competition litigations and M&A. We can apply surveys and consumer behavior research to evaluate market definition, monopolization claims, substitution patterns, but-for market outcomes, divestment effectiveness, and the uniformity of cost pass-through. Our survey experts and consultants leverage their deep experience to design empirical studies and experiments across numerous industries that can withstand rigorous scrutiny.

Our survey research is tailored to the assignment and industry, and can serve as evidence when actual market data is sparse or unavailable. We also assist with evaluating opposing experts’ methodologies, surveys, and primary data that may surface during discovery. Our experts have also utilized existing internal surveys and A/B testing conducted in the normal course of business to support class action assessments, evaluate but-for pricing and market shares, and estimate damages in antitrust and competition matters. We specialize in communicating results to a variety of stakeholders through tailored reports and visualizations, ensuring that findings are clear, rigorous, and actionable inside and outside the courtroom.

Our Methods

Our methods include:

  • Purchase funnel – We use the purchase funnel framework to explore purchase substitution patterns under different competitive constraints as well as market compositions. This framework can also be used to evaluate but-for demand absent particular conduct or product offerings, amongst other applications.
  • Test/control experiments – To measure consumer understanding or purchase intent, we apply test/control experimental designs to isolate the causal effect (if any) of a particular product characteristic on purchase decisions, beliefs, or other aspects of consumer behavior. These findings can be used in partial and full-equilibrium models in M&A reviews, as well as to address impact and injury in competition matters.
  • Choice experiments and conjoint analysis – Our experts apply choice experiments and conjoint analyses to assess consumers’ or industrial buyers’ preferences for certain products or services. Based on these preferences, we determine preference shares for actual and hypothetical product offerings, which can be used by decision makers in GUPPI calculations and market simulation models.
  • Consumer surveys – Direct consumer surveys are used to supplement CRM data and public market data enabling the evaluation of substitution patterns in both B2B and B2C industries. These surveys can target representative individuals worldwide, utilizing survey panels around the globe, and can enable assessment of potential competition concerns in global M&A reviews.

Our Methods