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Major new market study into mobile ecosystems
Continue reading: Major new market study into mobile ecosystemsFollowing on from the announcement of a new antitrust investigation into Facebook (and indeed a Financial Times report that an Amazon case is imminent), the CMA has launched an ambitious market study into mobile ecosystems. The CMA already has ongoing investigations into Google’s Privacy Sandbox and Apple’s approach to in-app purchasing; it has established the…
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CMA publishes commitments offered by Google with respect to its Privacy Sandbox proposals, seeks comments
Continue reading: CMA publishes commitments offered by Google with respect to its Privacy Sandbox proposals, seeks commentsLast Friday the UK Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) published a 93-page long notice of intention to accept commitments offered by Google in relation to its Privacy Sandbox proposals, inviting all interested parties to submit their observations. By way of reminder, the CMA launched an investigation back in January 2021 into Google’s removal of third-party…
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Google fined € 220 million by French Autorité de la concurrence for breaching competition law in ad tech; offers commitments
Continue reading: Google fined € 220 million by French Autorité de la concurrence for breaching competition law in ad tech; offers commitmentsYesterday, the French competition authority (“Autorité de la concurrence”) handed down a landmark decision finding that Google has breached Article 102 TFEU and the equivalent provision of French competition law through anticompetitive conduct in ad tech. The Autorité imposed on Google a fine of €220 million and rendered binding a series of commitments (“engagements”) proposed…
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Maintaining a level playing field when Big Tech disrupts the financial services sector
Continue reading: Maintaining a level playing field when Big Tech disrupts the financial services sectorHello from me to all Platform Law Blog subscribers! I joined Geradin Partners last week, based in London. I hope I can help the team shed light on some of the complex and fascinating issues that the blog covers. To kick off, Damien and I have written an article analysing the expansion of Google, Apple,…
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The DMA proposal : Where do things stand ?
Continue reading: The DMA proposal : Where do things stand ?The combination of a long week-end and rainy weather in Brussels has allowed me to catch up with my readings on the many papers and reports that have been written in the past few weeks on the DMA proposals by think tanks, academics, lobbyists, companies, and other entities or individuals interested in the topic. It…
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The CMA-ICO’s joint statement on competition and data protection law– A major step forward
Continue reading: The CMA-ICO’s joint statement on competition and data protection law– A major step forwardIt is often thought that data protection policymakers want your personal data to be held within big firms’ walled gardens and shared with no-one, while competition policymakers want big firms to be broken up and your personal data to be freely distributed among firms. Is that right, and if so, what are we going to do…
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The Commission’s SO to Apple and anticompetitive effects: A Rejoinder
Continue reading: The Commission’s SO to Apple and anticompetitive effects: A RejoinderIn a recent blog post, Pablo Ibanez Colomo responded to the observations I had made on his reaction to the issuance of a Statement of Objections in the Apple music streaming case. In this post, I would like to briefly react to Pablo’s response, but also raise additional questions over the application of the so-called…
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Further thoughts on the Commission’s Statement of Objections to Apple on App Store rules for music streaming providers
Continue reading: Further thoughts on the Commission’s Statement of Objections to Apple on App Store rules for music streaming providersOne of the great features of competition law as a discipline is that reasonable people can have different views on the application of the law to the same set of facts. There is therefore scope for discussion and, especially in the digital sector, passionate debates. In this respect, my reaction to the news that the…
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The need for coordination among digital regulators: The example of the UK Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum
Continue reading: The need for coordination among digital regulators: The example of the UK Digital Regulation Cooperation ForumWork on digital regulation in the UK continues apace. The Digital Regulation Cooperation Forum (DRCF) is an initiative that brings together the four regulators who are most involved in digital matters – the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Ofcom, the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) and, since 1 April, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). That’s a lot of anachronyms to digest, but don’t stop reading: the DRCF is important! It shows that the…
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EU sends Apple Statement of Objections (music streaming services)
Continue reading: EU sends Apple Statement of Objections (music streaming services)Just a few days after the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission released its interim report on app marketplaces finding that “Apple’s App Store and Google’s Play Store have significant market power in the distribution of mobile apps in Australia,” the European Commission addressed to Apple a Statement of Objections over its App Store rules for…