Attorney General Phil Weiser, FTC and states sue to stop playground equipment monopoly

Attorney General Phil Weiser, FTC and states sue to stop playground equipment monopoly

Oct. 19, 2026 (DENVER) - Attorney General Phil Weiser joined with the Federal Trade Commission and a bipartisan group of state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to block the proposed merger between PlayPower and Burke, two of the largest manufacturers of outdoor playground equipment. The proposed transaction between the two private equity backed companies would lead to higher prices, lower quality and service, and diminished innovation for tens of thousands of schools, parks, churches, and other customers of commercial outdoor playground equipment.

"Competition for playground equipment means parks, schools, and houses of worship have more choices and pay less for equipment," Attorney General Weiser said. "When companies seek to decrease competition through an anticompetitive merger, I will always stand up to protect consumers. That's why we are going to court to stop this harmful merger."

The commercial playground equipment industry is highly concentrated, with five companies-PlayCore, PlayPower, Burke, Landscape Structures, Inc., and KOMPAN, Inc. -accounting for roughly 90 percent of national sales. PlayPower competes head-to-head with Burke today, but PlayPower is losing ground to Burke. Rather than strengthen its competitive efforts against its rival, PlayPower is attempting to eliminate the pressure it faces from Burke by acquiring it. PlayPower is owned by Platinum Equity Advisors, LLC, and Burke is owned by Bertram Capital Management, LLC.

The elimination of the head-to-head rivalry between PlayPower and Burke threatens price, quality, service, and innovation competition. The loss of price competition between the companies is especially problematic because, as demand for commercial outdoor playgrounds has increased, consolidation has resulted in significant price increases. Parks, schools, churches, and other customers often spend from $50,000 to more than $1 million to purchase commercial outdoor playgrounds. In Colorado, PlayPower and Burke make up roughly 41 percent of statewide sales. Eliminating Burke would remove PlayPower's most important competitive constraint in Colorado. Burke's products are also built for Colorado's climate with important UV protection.

The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, alleges that the proposed merger is illegal under the FTC Act and Section 7 of the Clayton Act, a key federal antitrust law enacted to curb monopolies. The FTC and the states are asking a federal court to permanently enjoin PlayPower and Burke from taking any further steps to execute the proposed merger, award costs and attorneys' fees, and award any other relief the court may deem just and proper.

Joining Attorney General Weiser and the FTC in the lawsuit are the attorneys general from Arizona, California, Illinois, Nevada, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wisconsin.

Read a copy of the redacted complaint (PDF).

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