YORK, Pa. — Yesterday, aftermarketNews reported that MAHLE will acquire RTI Technologies, based in York, Pa., which has been owned by Bosch since 2010.
According to a statement from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), Robert Bosch GmbH was required to sell the business, which makes equipment used to recharge vehicle air conditioning systems, as part of an agreement resolving charges that Bosch’s acquisition of SPX Service Solutions U.S. would have been anticompetitive. The FTC charged that, as originally proposed, Bosch’s acquisition of SPX Service Solutions would have given it a virtual monopoly in the market for air conditioning recycling, recovery and recharge (ACRRR) devices.
According to the FTC’s complaint, Bosch’s acquisition of SPX’s Service Solutions business would give Bosch monopoly power in the U.S. market for ACRRR devices. Following the transaction as proposed, Bosch would have controlled an overwhelming share of the market, according to the FTC. The Bosch and RTI brands account for about 10 percent of the U.S. ACRRR market. SPX’s Robinair brand is the leading supplier of ACRRR equipment in the United States, with more than 80 percent of sales in this market, the FTC said.
Under the agreement, Bosch will grant manufacturers licenses to key patents they need in order to compete in the market for this equipment. The proposed settlement order also requires Bosch to end agreements that restrict third parties from advertising, servicing, distributing or selling competitive products in the United States.
Under the proposed order, Bosch will provide MAHLE with all of the assets needed to operate Bosch’s current U.S. ACRRR business, including RTI’s operations in York, Pa. To ensure the sale is successful, Bosch also will provide MAHLE with relevant intellectual property and access to key employees of RTI’s ACRRR operations. In addition, Bosch has agreed to discontinue SPX’s restrictive “exclusive dealing” arrangements with wholesale distributors and independent service technicians, and will be barred from entering into such agreements for 10 years.
