June 28, 2025 | Washington, D.C.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) announced today that it has reached a settlement with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) and Juniper Networks, allowing their planned merger to proceed under strict conditions aimed at preserving competition in the wireless networking market.
The agreement, which DOJ officials characterized as a “novel approach,” requires HPE to divest its global “Instant On” wireless local area network (WLAN) business and ensure access to critical Juniper software for competitors. The settlement sidesteps a lengthy court battle while addressing antitrust concerns stemming from the proposed deal.
“This marks another key legal victory from the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division,” said DOJ Chief of Staff Chad Mizelle. “Our attorneys will continue fighting and winning to defend the American people and consumers.”
Under the settlement terms, HPE must sell off its Instant On business—used in campus and branch networking—within 180 days. The divestiture includes intellectual property, R&D personnel, and customer relationships, all of which must go to a buyer approved by the DOJ.
The agreement also mandates a public auction for the licensing of Juniper’s AI Ops for Mist source code, a key AI-powered software platform used in modern WLAN systems. The license will be perpetual and non-exclusive, with optional support to ease integration by rivals. The DOJ emphasized that these provisions are designed to maintain a level playing field in a fast-consolidating sector.
Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater praised the Antitrust Division’s efforts, thanking “the hardworking men and women” who led the investigation. Attorney General Pam Bondi, who has made aggressive antitrust enforcement a cornerstone of her tenure, described the settlement as evidence of a results-driven strategy that avoids prolonged litigation.
The HPE-Juniper deal, announced earlier this year, raised alarm bells among industry analysts and regulators concerned about potential consolidation in the networking and cloud infrastructure markets. Today’s resolution signals the DOJ’s continued willingness to allow mergers—if accompanied by robust structural and behavioral remedies.
The settlement will now go before a federal judge for final approval.
