The proposed merger of Raytheon and United Technologies would create a vast aerospace and defense enterprise, but it would have no negative impacts on the competitive landscape. Raytheon Chairman & CEO Tom Kennedy told me on June 10 that he can’t remember ever competing with United Technologies for a contract, which hints at how little overlap there is in the product lines of the two companies. However, there might be some significant benefits to competition from the combination because it will be spread across so many revenue sources that it can keep research activities moving ahead even in the midst of cyclical downturns in demand. I have written a commentary for Forbes exploring that possibility here.
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