Merger

When two companies merge… they generally uh…are attracted to each other...hopefully respect each other. They share stock or combine the stocks of each side...and combine uh…efforts. And then cuddle afterwards.

If they are successful at the merger then the combination of two roughly equals yields more than the one plus one combo that made them. So two companies get together on generally equal-ish footing. Acquisitions are a combining: Like that alien eating thing, on much different footing.

The large company eats, or buys the target, either using its more highly valued stock and or cash to do so. Why would a company acquire another?

Well the target might have 100 employees, 90 of whom can be fired with massive expense savings for the acquiror, such that, economically, the acquisition just makes sense.

Acquisitions happen for market power reasons as well, like...imagine the negotiating leverage if Amazon bought the next 5 biggest online retailers. Probably not legal, given the monopoly-like dominance of AMZN...but wow, that would be a powerful set of acquisitions.

And Bezos would grow even more powerful. Is that him climbing the Empire State Building? Needs a shave.