The deal could hurt competition especially regarding the potential dominance of the merged entity in the cricket broadcasting market.

• As per the Competition (Amendment) Act 2023, when the CCI is of the opinion that a merger is likely to have an adverse effect on competition, it can  issues a statement of objections.

Other recent CCI steps to increase competition

• Google: CCI imposed a monetary penalty of Rs. 1337.76 crore on Google for anti-competitive practices in relation to Android mobile devices.
• Amazon and Flipkart: CCI probe found that the E-commerce majors Amazon, Flipkart flouted antitrust laws by preferring sellers affiliated with or controlled by Flipkart or Amazon.

Why is lack of competition bad for consumers?

• Inefficiencies: The monopoly company  may not focus on improving the quality of the products and also create barriers for competitors to enter the marketplace.
• Innovation: Monopolies lead to a lack of innovation as there is no need to improve products to entice consumers.
• Higher prices: When a company has no competitors, it has a greater ability to set the higher prices.