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The Department of Justice has officially filed a lawsuit to block Hewlett Packard Enterprise’s (HPE) $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks.
Some shit you should know before you read: Back in January 2024, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) announced plans to buy Juniper Networks for $14 billion in a deal aimed at strengthening its position in the wireless networking market. HPE, known for its networking division, wanted to combine its technology with Juniper’s Mist AI-powered networking platform. Juniper had been growing quickly and competing with both HPE and Cisco by offering advanced automation and artificial intelligence for network management. The merger was meant to create a stronger networking company by bringing together HPE’s infrastructure and Juniper’s innovative technology, helping businesses improve their wireless networks. If completed, this would be one of HPE’s biggest acquisitions and would reshape the industry.
What’s going on now: In an announcement, the Department of Justice (DOJ) confirmed that they filed a lawsuit to block HPE’s $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks, arguing that the deal would harm competition in the wireless networking market. The DOJ claims the merger would eliminate direct competition between HPE and Juniper, two of the top three providers of enterprise-grade wireless local area network (WLAN) solutions in the US. According to the lawsuit, allowing the acquisition to proceed would leave just two dominant players—HPE and Cisco—controlling over 70% of the market, reducing choices for businesses and potentially leading to higher prices and less innovation.
Acting Assistant Attorney General Omeed Assefi said, “The threat this merger poses is not theoretical. Vital industries in our country — including American hospitals and small businesses — rely on wireless networks to complete their missions. This proposed merger would significantly reduce competition and weaken innovation, resulting in large segments of the American economy paying more for less from wireless technology providers.”
The DOJ also noted that Juniper is a disruptive force in the industry, driving competitors to lower prices and improve technology. Instead of continuing to compete, the DOJ says that HPE is now trying to eliminate this competition by acquiring its rival.
HPE & Juniper push back: In a joint statement, both companies said, “We will vigorously defend against the Department of Justice’s overreaching interpretation of antitrust laws and will demonstrate how this transaction will provide customers with greater innovation and choice, positively change the dynamics in the networking market by enhancing competition, and strengthen the backbone of U.S. networking infrastructure.”
