INTRODUCTION Contributed by: Franz Hoffet, Homburger
that Epic Systems is foreclosing competition in plat - form markets for platforms which allow health insur - ances to access and analyse medical record informa - tion. Allegedly, Epic Systems is pressuring insurance companies which use its medical record system to stop using competing platforms. A new trend in the US concerns challenges of merg - ers by private antitrust litigation. For example, a pri - vate consumer class has sued T-Mobile with respect to its merger with Sprint. The class alleges that the acquisition permitted all cell phone providers to raise their prices. The consumer class not only claims damages but also seeks to unwind the merger and create another competitor. Similarly, private plaintiffs have challenged the merger between Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines although – as in the case of T-Mobile – the transaction has already been cleared by the Department of Justice.
Finally, in the US a new trend with respect to court approval of settlements seems to be developing. District courts have recently rejected proposed class action settlements. For instance, in a case regarding payment card fees charged to merchants, a settle - ment proposed by the parties has been rejected by the court which found the proposed settlement amount of USD30 billion to be insufficient. It appears that federal courts are increasingly willing to more deeply scruti - nise settlements in antitrust class actions.
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