Impact of mergers reviewed by the Commission on markups and innovation

The European Commission, specifically DG COMP, is planning to publish a forthcoming negotiated procedure for a procurement contract valued at 142,000 EUR. This opportunity is focused on conducting an economic impact assessment concerning the effects of mergers reviewed by the Commission, particularly in relation to market markups and innovation. The study will build on prior work, including research by Stiebale & Szücs (2022), and aims to analyze both the impacts of merger efficiencies and market power on competitors, as well as the innovation outcomes associated with different merger procedures.

Applicants will likely include research institutes, consulting firms, and universities with expertise in economic analysis, competition policy, and innovation studies. The opportunity is open to entities established in EU member states, as well as possibly EEA countries or others with specific agreements with the EU. The project, taking place over a maximum duration of 12 months, is set to start accepting expressions of interest on June 18, 2025, with a deadline of July 5, 2025. The anticipated date for launching the negotiated procedure is July 9, 2025.

Interested parties must submit their expressions of interest electronically. The focus of the study will be on how mergers influence the behavior of merging parties versus non-merging competitors, particularly in terms of innovation activity, which will be measured through metrics such as patenting and R&D investment. This is a pre-announcement and not a formal call for tenders. The main classification for this opportunity falls under economic impact assessment, outlined by the CPV code 79311410. The nature of support is monetary compensation for the services rendered, with no co-funding required from the applicants.

This is a publication announcing the European Commission, DG COMP's intention to publish a future negotiated low or middle value procedure, not a call for tenders.

The procedure identifier is EC-COMP/2025/MVP/0025-EXA.

The description is as follows: DG COMP is working on a follow-up to the comprehensive 2024 report: “Protecting competition in a changing world: Evidence on the evolution of competition in the EU during the past 25 years”. This contribution to the new report builds on prior work by Stiebale & Szücs (2022), who examine ex-post changes in the markups of non-merging rivals when a merger is concluded, in order to disentangle (i) changes in markups due to reduced costs resulting from merger efficiencies which are presumed only present in the merging parties from (ii) changes due to higher market power, which would allow non-merging rivals to increase their markups as well. The present action expands on this work by discerning between ex-post markup changes of merging and non-merging parties following different types of merger procedure: simplified procedures, phase I investigations (with/without remedy) and phase II investigations (with/without remedy). In addition, it aims to examine ex-post changes in innovation activity of merging and non-merging parties, as measured by e.g. levels of patenting or R&D investment. The idea behind this analysis would be to assess the pervasiveness of mergers leading to higher (or lower) innovation activity on behalf of the merging parties, and the corresponding reaction of non-merging rivals to increase (or decrease) their innovation activity (cf. strategic substitutes vs. complements).

The procedure type is a planned negotiated procedure for a middle/low value contract.

The estimated total value is 142000 EUR.

The lead contracting authority is the European Commission, DG COMP Competition.

The main classification (CPV) code is 79311410, which stands for Economic impact assessment.

The nature of the contract is for services.

The maximum contract duration is 12 months.

There is no framework agreement.

The start date for expression of interest is 2025-06-18 Europe/Brussels.

The deadline for expression of interest is 05/07/2025 04:59 Europe/Brussels.

The indicative date of launch of the negotiated procedure is 2025-07-09 Europe/Brussels.

The method of expression of interest is electronic.

The address for expression of interest is "Express interest".

A frequently asked question is: Where can I find the procurement documents for calls for tenders with ‘ExA' in the reference? The answer is: References that feature an ‘ExA’ are not calls for tenders. They are a publication announcing the contracting authority’s intent to launch in the future a low or middle negotiated procedure. This was published on 03/10/2024 16:32.

In summary, the European Commission's DG COMP intends to launch a negotiated procedure for a middle or low value contract to follow up on its 2024 report regarding competition in the EU. The project aims to analyze the impact of mergers on market markups and innovation activity, specifically looking at how mergers affect both the merging companies and their competitors. The study will consider different types of merger procedures and their consequences on patenting, R&D investment, and overall market dynamics. The estimated value of the contract is 142,000 EUR, and the maximum duration is 12 months. Parties interested in participating should express their interest electronically, with a deadline of July 5, 2025. The actual call for tenders is expected to be launched around July 9, 2025. This announcement is not a call for tenders itself, but rather a notification of an upcoming opportunity.

Eligible Applicant Types: The information provided does not explicitly state the eligible applicant types. However, given the nature of the contract (services related to economic impact assessment) and the estimated value, it is likely that eligible applicants could include research institutes, universities, consulting firms, and potentially other organizations with expertise in economic analysis, competition policy, and innovation studies. The specific eligibility criteria will be detailed in the future call for tenders.

Funding Type: The funding type is procurement, specifically a service contract. The contracting authority, DG COMP, intends to procure services related to an economic impact assessment.

Consortium Requirement: The information does not explicitly state whether a consortium is required or if a single applicant is sufficient. This detail will likely be specified in the future call for tenders. It is possible that both single applicants and consortia could be eligible.

Beneficiary Scope (Geographic Eligibility): The opportunity is being published by the European Commission, DG COMP. Therefore, it is highly likely that the geographic eligibility will primarily focus on entities located within the EU. However, depending on the specific requirements of the call, entities from EEA countries or other countries with specific agreements with the EU might also be eligible. The exact geographic eligibility will be defined in the future call for tenders.

Target Sector: The target sector is primarily focused on competition policy and economic impact assessment. More specifically, it targets the analysis of mergers and their impact on market markups and innovation activity. This falls under the broader sector of finance and economic consulting, with a strong emphasis on regulatory economics.

Mentioned Countries: No specific countries are mentioned. However, the context is the European Union, as the contracting authority is the European Commission, DG COMP. Therefore, the relevant region is the EU.

Project Stage: The project stage is research and analysis. The work involves building upon existing research, examining ex-post changes, and assessing the pervasiveness of mergers. It is an analytical project rather than a development or commercialization project.

Funding Amount: The estimated total value of the contract is 142,000 EUR. This falls into the €50k–€200k range.

Application Type: This is not a call for tenders but a publication announcing the contracting authority’s intention to publish a future negotiated procedure for a middle/low value contract. The future application type will be a negotiated procedure. For the expression of interest, the method is electronic.

Nature of Support: Beneficiaries will receive money in exchange for services rendered. The contract is for services related to economic impact assessment.

Application Stages: There will be at least two stages: an expression of interest and a negotiated procedure. The exact number of stages will be clarified in the future call for tenders.

Success Rates: Since this is a planned negotiated procedure, the success rates are not applicable at this stage. Success rates will depend on the number of applicants invited to negotiate and the quality of their proposals.

Co-funding Requirement: The information does not explicitly state whether co-funding is required. Typically, procurement contracts do not require co-funding from the applicant. This detail will be confirmed in the future call for tenders.

Summary:

This is a pre-announcement from the European Commission, DG COMP, regarding a planned negotiated procedure for a middle/low value contract, with an estimated total value of 142,000 EUR. The project aims to conduct an economic impact assessment of mergers reviewed by the Commission, focusing on their effects on market markups and innovation. The study will build upon existing research to disentangle the impacts of merger efficiencies versus increased market power, and to examine changes in innovation activity following different types of merger procedures. The contract duration is expected to be 12 months. The start date for expression of interest is planned for June 18, 2025, with a deadline of July 5, 2025. The indicative date for the launch of the negotiated procedure is July 9, 2025. Interested parties are invited to express their interest electronically. This is not a call for tenders yet, but a notification of a future opportunity. The main classification is economic impact assessment. The procedure identifier is EC-COMP/2025/MVP/0025-EXA. The contracting authority is the European Commission, DG COMP - Competition. The nature of the contract is for services. The method of expression of interest is electronic, and the address for expression of interest is "Express interest".