Waiver of existing exclusive rights with restaurants.The settlement announced today by Attorney General Schneiderman has three elements: This prospect created a significant risk that the transaction would have anticompetitive effects in Manhattan. But the proposed merger of Seamless and Grub Hub raised the possibility that Seamless would aggressively enforce its exclusivity provisions with Manhattan restaurants and use its strong market position to coerce additional restaurants – or key partners, such as Yelp – to do business with it exclusively.

that it will enable consumers to order food for delivery or takeout on its website and mobile applications, in a partnership with two smaller competitors of Seamless and GrubHub. Online food ordering is a vibrant and highly dynamic business, as demonstrated by the recent announcement by Yelp, Inc. The investigation also revealed that Seamless had entered into a large number of exclusive agreements with Manhattan-based restaurants that – if enforced by the merged company – would prevent those restaurants from contracting with competing online food ordering platforms. The Attorney General’s investigation into the proposed merger revealed that Seamless has a uniquely strong market position in Manhattan, with GrubHub as its key competitor. This settlement ensures that no single online platform will have a monopoly on access to Manhattan restaurants, and it allows consumers and restaurants the freedom to do business with the website or app of their choice.' 'With the recent growth in online food ordering, it’s especially important that restaurants – particularly smaller restaurants – have fair and equal access to online platforms to reach new customers and obtain much-needed extra business. 'New York’s restaurant industry is the best in the world, but its success depends on an environment of free and fair competition,' said Attorney General Schneiderman. The two companies, Seamless North America, LLC and GrubHub, Inc., have agreed to a package of commitments to ensure that alternative online food ordering platforms can compete with the newly combined business on a level playing field, with equal access to key Manhattan restaurants and business partners. Schneiderman today announced a settlement with the two leading online food ordering services in Manhattan, addressing concerns that the companies' proposed merger would improperly undermine competition in the online food ordering business.

Seamless grubhub merger