Regulators OK MSC’s Acquisition Deal
Even as federal regulators prepare to face off with MSC.Software Corp. over an earlier acquisition, they’ve signed off on the Santa Ana-based software maker’s bid to buy Mechanical Dynamics Inc.
The Federal Trade Commission earlier this month granted MSC.Software an early end to the antitrust waiting period for its proposed buy of Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Mechanical. MSC announced plans to buy the company in a cash deal in March.
MSC still faces a federal lawsuit over its 1999 buy of two industrial design software makers, Torrance’s Universal Analytics Inc. and Costa Mesa’s Computerized Structural Analysis & Research Corp. The case is expected to go to trial next month.
Regulators claim the deals stunted competition for a certain type of software used in testing product designs. MSC argues that it’s a niche product line too narrow for antitrust laws to apply. The government could seek to force MSC to sell off those acquisitions if it prevails.
When the commission requested in its initial filing that MSC turn over documents dating back to 1995, the company responded that the request was too broad for a case focusing on deals made in 2000. That led the commission to deliver a scathing response in January, saying MSC has demonstrated “a disturbing habit of reneging on promises” to disclose documents. The commission then sent investigators to MSC headquarters to remove materials.
MSC’s deal to buy Mechanical Dynamics, which makes prototyping software for engineers and designers, has gone more smoothly. The company plans to spend about $120 million to buy the company. With the federal nod, Chief Executive Frank Perna said he expects the Mechanical buy to conclude in the current quarter.
