Even if antitrust regulators don’t stand in the way of a merger of real estate search giants Zillow and Trulia, they might impose conditions that would give Zillow cold feet about closing the deal, DealBook reports.

Zillow and Trulia have minimized antitrust concerns, saying that while they are big players in search, they are one of many players in the online media industry, and that most real estate ad dollars haven’t even migrated to online.

But DealBook’s ‘s Steven Davidoff Solomon notes that if government regulators place “restrictions of any kind on Zillow ‘or’ a material adverse effect occurs, Zillow does not have to acquire Trulia.”

(When CoreLogic acquired DataQuick Information Systems Inc. this year, for example, it agreed to license national assessor and recorder bulk data to RealtyTrac to settle a complaint by the Federal Trade Commission that the $661 million acquisition was likely to result in less competition.)

If Zillow is facing something similar that it doesn’t like, it can pay $150 million and walk away from the deal after the Jan. 28, 2016, termination date.

“That is 18 months, an eternity in the technology sector,” Solomon notes. Source: dealbook.nytimes.com.

Show Comments Hide Comments
Sign up for Inman’s Morning Headlines
What you need to know to start your day with all the latest industry developments
By submitting your email address, you agree to receive marketing emails from Inman.
Success!
Thank you for subscribing to Morning Headlines.
Back to top
×
Log in
If you created your account with Google or Facebook
Don't have an account?
Forgot your password?
No Problem

Simply enter the email address you used to create your account and click "Reset Password". You will receive additional instructions via email.

Forgot your username? If so please contact customer support at (510) 658-9252

Password Reset Confirmation

Password Reset Instructions have been sent to

Subscribe to The Weekender
Get the week's leading headlines delivered straight to your inbox.
Top headlines from around the real estate industry. Breaking news as it happens.
15 stories covering tech, special reports, video and opinion.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
Unique features from hacker profiles to portal watch and video interviews.
It looks like you’re already a Select Member!
To subscribe to exclusive newsletters, visit your email preferences in the account settings.
Up-to-the-minute news and interviews in your inbox, ticket discounts for Inman events and more
1-Step CheckoutPay with a credit card
By continuing, you agree to Inman’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

You will be charged . Your subscription will automatically renew for on . For more details on our payment terms and how to cancel, click here.

Interested in a group subscription?
Finish setting up your subscription
×