Seamless, GrubHub Settle with AG Over Merger Concerns

Online food-ordering sites Seamless and GrubHub have reached an agreement with the New York Attorney General's office, which launched an investigation in May of this year upon the companies' announced merger plans. Attorney General Eric Schneiderman originally voiced concerns that the Seamless/GrubHub merger — which promises to create "a combined network of more than 20,000 local takeout restaurants across the U.S." — would effectively create a monopoly in the New York area. The Wall Street Journal reports that Seamless/GrubHub has thus "agreed to eliminate current exclusive agreements with Manhattan restaurants if the merger is approved," and that the hybrid company would not enter into exclusivity agreements with restaurants for another 18 months.

The settlement also stipulates the Seamless and GrubHub cannot enter into a partnership with Yelp, which announced the launch of its own online ordering platform last month. In a statement, a GrubHub spokesperson says that "we entered into the assurance in order to conclude the [New York Attorney General's] investigation."

· Seamless, GrubHub, Serve Up a Settlement to End Investigation [WSJ]
· All Seamless Coverage on Eater [-E-]