Attorney General Mayes Statement on Abandonment of PlayPower-Burke Merger Following Antitrust Lawsuit

PHOENIX - Attorney General Kris Mayes today announced that Platinum Equity and its portfolio company PlayPower have abandoned their proposed acquisition of BCI Burke, one week after Arizona, 11 other states, and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a lawsuit to block the deal.

“Within a week of our filing, PlayPower walked away from this deal," said Attorney General Mayes. "This outcome protects Arizona taxpayers and will help keep playground equipment affordable for the schools, parks, and cities that depend on it. When a merger threatens to raise prices on consumers, the Arizona Attorney General's Office will act. I’m grateful to the FTC and our bipartisan coalition of attorneys general for standing up for competition.”

PlayPower and Burke are two of the largest makers of commercial outdoor playground equipment in the country. The complaint, filed October 19, alleged that the merger would drive up prices and reduce quality, innovation, and service for the schools, churches, parks and recreation departments, and other organizations that buy this equipment.

According to the complaint, five companies, including PlayPower and Burke, hold 85% to 90% of the U.S. market for commercial outdoor playground equipment. The merger would have reduced the number of major competitors from five to four and given PlayPower’s owners control of more than 30% of the market. The coalition also alleged the deal could have hurt the independent sales representatives who sell these companies’ products.

Attorney General Mayes joined the FTC and a bipartisan coalition of attorneys general from California, Colorado, Illinois, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin in filing the lawsuit.

In its own statement today, the FTC’s Bureau of Competition said the outcome will help hold down the prices that schools, churches, daycares, and parks departments pay for playgrounds, and thanked its state partners for their collaboration.