A US federal judge ruled to block the proposed merger between JetBlue and Spirit Airlines due to competition concerns raised by the DOJ. The judge agreed with arguments that the $3.8 billion deal would reduce competition and likely lead to higher airfares by eliminating Spirit as a low-cost carrier option. Both JetBlue and Spirit had argued that the merger was necessary for JetBlue to better compete with larger airline companies. The ruling could allow Frontier Airlines another chance to acquire Spirit, having previously reached a deal that was topped by JetBlue.
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00:00 It's Benzinga and here's what's on the block.
00:02 A US federal judge ruled to block the proposed merger between JetBlue and Spirit Airlines due
00:06 to competition concerns raised by the DOJ. The judge agreed with arguments that the $3.8 billion
00:12 deal would reduce competition and likely lead to higher airfares by eliminating Spirit as a low-cost
00:16 carrier option. Both JetBlue and Spirit had argued that the merger was necessary for JetBlue to
00:21 better compete with larger airline companies. The ruling could allow Frontier Airlines another
00:25 chance to acquire Spirit, having previously reached a deal that was topped by JetBlue. JetBlue and
00:30 Spirit may still decide to appeal the ruling blocking their merger plans. For all things
00:33 money visit Benzinga.com