International Remedies Resolve Canadian Issues in Boston Scientific, Guidant Merger

Ottawa, May 11, 2006 – The Competition Bureau will not challenge the acquisition of the Guidant Corporation (Guidant) by Boston Scientific Corporation (Boston Scientific). The Bureau has determined that the consent order Boston Scientific signed with the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and commitments made to the European Commission (EC) adequately resolve competition concerns in Canada. 

As an upfront resolution, Boston Scientific proposed to divest Guidant's vascular intervention and endovascular businesses, including intellectual property, to Abbott Laboratories (Abbott). The FTC consent order incorporates the Boston Scientific divestiture agreement. 

The Bureau is satisfied that the divestiture addresses potential competition concerns in certain Canadian medical devices markets including bare metal stents, drug eluting stents, guidewires and balloon dilatation catheters. These intravascular devices are used to treat coronary artery disease. 

The FTC order also includes Abbott’s agreement to immediately relinquish the voting rights to the small equity position it acquired in Boston Scientific, and agreement to divest that equity position within thirty months to limit any entanglements between the parties.

Over the course of the examination, the Bureau consulted with customers and competitors, and cooperated with the FTC and the Directorate-General for Competition of the European Commission.

Cooperation and comity principles adopted by the Bureau and its international counterparts promote the use of coordinated enforcement efforts to reduce regulatory burdens on businesses and ensure agencies use their resources as efficiently as possible. More information on these principles is available in the paper Canadian Perspectives on the Role of Comity in Competition Law Enforcement in a Globalized World.

The Competition Bureau is an independent law enforcement agency. We contribute to the prosperity of Canadians by protecting and promoting competitive markets and enabling informed consumer choice.

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Eric Glaude
Communication Advisor
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(819) 953-9760 

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