When: Monday, July 13, 2020, 4:00 PM - 5:00 PMWhere: Online
The CMA’s market study final report into online platforms funded by digital advertising is due to be published by 2nd July 2020. The CMA’s interim report last December discussed that such platforms provide highly valuable services, allowing people to find information in an instant and connect with family and friends from around the world – all at no direct cost to the consumer. It set out a provisional view that the largest such platforms, Google and Facebook, are now protected by such strong incumbency advantages – including network effects, economies of scale and unmatchable access to user data – that potential rivals can no longer compete on equal terms.
The CMA’s interim report set out the CMA’s initial analysis and discussed whether to propose the establishment of a pro-competition regulatory regime for online platforms in the UK in line with the Furman Review. It discussed a Digital Markets Unit (DMU) that would be empowered to enforce a code of conduct to govern the behaviour of ‘gatekeeper’ platforms with market power, ensuring concerns can be dealt with swiftly, before irrevocable harm to competition can occur.
It discussed whether the DMU would also have powers to tackle sources of market power and increase competition, including powers to increase interoperability and provide access to data, to increase consumer choice over whether to receive personalised advertising, and to order the breakup of platforms where necessary. The Webinar will discuss the Final Report, and how the CMA plans to address the issues it identified in the Interim Report.
This event is convened by Professor Ioannis Kokkoris, Co-Director of the Competition Law Forum, BIICL and Centre for Commercial Law Studies, Queen Mary University of London.