Hewlett Packard Enterprise wins court approval for Juniper Networks takeover settlement

Hewlett Packard Enterprise has secured court approval for its settlement with the US Department of Justice, clearing the path for its $14 billion acquisition of Juniper Networks to finally close. The deal, first announced in January 2024, has spent the better part of 18 months navigating a regulatory obstacle course that included an outright DOJ lawsuit trying to kill it.

What HPE had to give up

The DOJ filed its antitrust lawsuit on January 30, 2025, arguing that combining HPE and Juniper would reduce competition in enterprise-grade wireless networking equipment. That’s the market for the access points, controllers, and management software that power Wi-Fi networks in offices, hospitals, and university campuses.

To settle the case, HPE agreed on June 28, 2025, to divest its Instant On campus and branch WLAN business. The company has 180 days to complete that divestiture.

HPE also agreed to license critical Juniper software to ensure competitors can still access the tools they need to remain viable in the market.

HPE CEO Antonio Neri framed the outcome as a win for all parties involved.

“Our agreement with the DOJ preserves the intended benefits of this deal for our customers and shareholders.”

The original offer valued Juniper at $40 per share. Juniper’s Mist AI platform, which uses artificial intelligence to automate network operations, was widely seen as the crown jewel of the acquisition.

A long road through regulatory review

When HPE first proposed the acquisition on January 9, 2024, a combined HPE-Juniper entity would create a formidable competitor to Cisco Systems and Arista Networks in enterprise networking.

European regulators moved relatively quickly. The EU approved the acquisition in August 2024 without imposing any conditions.

The DOJ took a different view. Its January 2025 lawsuit argued that the merger would concentrate too much market power in wireless networking, potentially leading to higher prices and less innovation for enterprise customers.

Judge P. Casey Pitts of the US District Court for the Northern District of California has been overseeing the case. The judge allowed HPE to continue integrating Juniper’s operations even while the settlement underwent judicial review.

Multiple state attorneys general, particularly from California and New York, have challenged the deal, arguing that the DOJ’s required divestitures and licensing terms don’t go far enough to protect competition. Those challenges remain ongoing.

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