The increasingly central role of data in the digital economy has made post-merger data integration an important but challenging process for technological firms. Although the operational benefits and competitive advantages of such integration are widely acknowledged, it also raises serious concerns relating to regulatory compliance, data privacy, and competition law.
This article analyses the intersection of these legal and economic issues, with a particular focus on the risks that arise from combining large volumes of personal and behavioural data following a merger. It adopts a doctrinal and comparative approach, examining legislation and regulatory practice in major jurisdictions. Drawing on high-profile mergers, such as Facebook/WhatsApp, Google/Fitbit, and Microsoft/LinkedIn, the article explains how the convergence of competition and data-related regulation has generated overlapping mandates and regulatory competition in data-driven mergers.
The analysis suggests that current merger review processes are poorly equipped to address the competitive implications of extensive data collection and are not fully aligned with emerging privacy regimes. This reveals a regulatory gap between the enforcement of competition and privacy rules, which can result in fragmented oversight and inconsistent outcomes.
The article highlights indicate that addressing these multidimensional risks requires the development of ex ante regulatory tools, the integration of data governance assessments into merger review, and enhanced inter-agency coordination. It concludes with policy recommendations to better align regulatory frameworks, strengthen compliance obligations for merging parties and support a more coherent structure for future data integrationin the technology industry, particularly in mergers and acquisitions involving fintech, telecommunications, and platform-based enterprises.