UK set to take on big tech with new regulator

A new regulator aimed at curbing the dominance of tech giants such as Google, Facebook and Amazon has launched in the UK, marking a significant milestone for online market reform.

Why it matters

The key aims of the Digital Markets Unit (DMU) will be to crack down on unfair practices, which can “often leave businesses and consumers with less choice and more expensive goods and services”.

The details

• The first task of the DMU will be to look at whether new codes of conduct could iron out the power imbalances between the tech platforms, digital advertisers and content providers, such as news publishers.
• The launch of the new unit follows hard on the heels of an antitrust probe into Facebook being announced by Britain’s competition regulator, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The CMA earlier launched similar investigations into Google and Apple.
• CMA studies in 2019 concluded that Google has “significant market power in the general search market and in search advertising, and Facebook has significant market power in the social media market and in display advertising”. Around 80% of the £14 billion spent on digital ads in 2019 went to Google and Facebook.

Soundbite

“Our new, unashamedly pro-competition regime will help to curb the dominance of tech giants, unleash a wave of innovation throughout the market and ensure smaller firms aren’t pushed out” – Kwasi Kwarteng, UK Business Secretary.

Sourced from Reuters, Financial Times, CMA