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FanDuel, DraftKings Plan To Appeal FTC's Attempt To Block DFS Sites' Planned Merger

FanDuel and DraftKings are "planning to hit back at government attempts to block their controversial merger," according to Josh Kosman of the N.Y. POST. A November agreement to merge the two daily fantasy sports sites attracted lawsuits yesterday from the FTC, as well as the California and DC attorneys general, who "argued that it would quash competition." A source said that in response, DraftKings and FanDuel "plan to argue in court that they both lose money, and that it is therefore difficult to say they compete in a 'viable, real' market where mergers should be blocked." The FTC said that FanDuel and DraftKings "control" 90% of the paid DFS market. A key question before the FTC was whether DFS was a market "distinct from season-long fantasy sports." The merger parties "argue season-long fantasy sports have a much larger player base, perhaps as many as 40 million." As such, FanDuel and DraftKings "argue those competitors should be included when analyzing the fantasy market" (N.Y. POST, 6/20). In Boston, Antonio Planas notes a DraftKings-FanDuel merger "could cut their legal and advertising costs." The companies, which are both privately held, have had to "defend themselves against legal challenges as well as lobbying in states that have declared their offerings as illegal gambling." And as rivals, both have "spent aggressively on advertising" (BOSTON HERALD, 6/20). The move to the courts all but guarantees there will be no closure on the matter in time for the start of football season, as the companies had previously hoped (Eric Fisher, Staff Writer).

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