PlayPower and Platinum Equity abandon BCI Burke acquisition after FTC lawsuit

The Federal Trade Commission said in a statement published Oct. 27, 2026, that Platinum Equity and its portfolio company, PlayPower, had abandoned the proposed acquisition of BCI Burke. The decision followed a lawsuit the FTC and a dozen states filed the week before the statement to block the merger.

The dispute centered on commercial outdoor playground equipment. The FTC estimates that the five largest manufacturers, including PlayPower and Burke, control 85% to 90% of that market.

According to the agency, the acquisition would have reduced the number of major competitors from five to four and put more than 30% of the relevant market under PlayPower's owners. The FTC also argued that smaller manufacturers often lack the distribution, sales teams, safety certifications, capacity, and product range needed to replace the competition the deal would have removed.

Why public buyers were central to the case

FTC Bureau of Competition Director Daniel Guarnera said continued competition should benefit schools, churches, daycares, and parks departments that purchase playgrounds. State and municipal governments spend hundreds of millions of dollars on playground equipment each year, making taxpayers a major part of the regulator's case.

Guarnera said keeping PlayPower and Burke in head-to-head competition should support lower prices, higher quality, better service, and more innovation. Those are the FTC's expected effects of the deal's abandonment, not post-transaction results measured in the statement.