This tech sector antitrust/competition tracker, run by the Center for Transnational Law and Business, provides recent news and developments in competition policy and antitrust enforcement specific to the tech sector in different regions around the world.
May 2, 2024
At the heart of the matter lies the Justice Department’s accusation that Google has unlawfully exploited its monopoly status to dominate the search engine market, resulting in sidelined competitors and compromised user experiences. In contrast, Google contends that its search engine’s popularity is a testament to its superior quality, rather than any monopolistic practices, as cited by the New York Times.
May 1, 2024
The U.S. Justice Department’s double-barreled antitrust attack on Google’s dominant search and Apple’s trendsetting iPhone is reviving memories of the epic battle that hobbled Microsoft before it roared back to yet again become the world’s most valuable company.
The parallels to the Justice Department’s landmark antitrust case in 1998 could provide a window into the potential breakthroughs that could be unleashed if regulators succeed in their attempts to crack down on Google and Apple.
May 1, 2024
The chair of the House Oversight Committee said on Wednesday he is investigating the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) work with the European Commission in the collapse of Amazon.com's plan to acquire iRobot Corp (IRBT.O), opens new tab in a $1.4 billion deal.
Apr. 30, 2024
US government agencies only purchased digital advertising through intermediaries so cannot seek damages, Google has said in seeking to throw out the Department of Justice’s monopolization lawsuit.
May 8, 2024
The US Justice Department is stepping up its focus on competition in the artificial intelligence industry, top officials said, as Big Tech companies invest billions of dollars to gain an edge in the new technology.
The DOJ is convening a workshop at Stanford University on May 30, bringing together industry leaders, researchers and government officials, Susan Athey, chief economist in the DOJ’s antitrust division, said at a Bloomberg roundtable on Wednesday.
May 7, 2024
TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance have initiated a lawsuit against the U.S. federal government. The lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, aims to block a law recently signed by President Joe Biden that mandates the divestiture of the popular short video app or threatens a ban on its use.
May 3, 2024
Google has accused the federal government of fabricating a market for its antitrust suit against A landmark antitrust trial between the Department of Justice and Google is coming to an end. The tech giant is accused of monopolizing the internet search market, sidelining competitors and harming consumers. The DOJ claims Google struck illegal deals, but the company argues it has the best search engine. Stephanie Sy discussed the case with Rebecca Allensworth of Vanderbilt Law School.
Apr. 30, 2024
Politicians’ rhetoric in recent years has suggested that the UK’s tech sector is doing remarkably well in the status quo: a “superpower” in AI, robotics, space tech, and fintech, no less, with a thriving start-up and venture capital scene that is behind only the US and China. So, in that context, can the DMCC Bill make a positive difference?
Apr. 29, 2024
The European Commission failed to properly assess ByteDance’s objections to its gatekeeper status and should have conducted market investigations to appraise them, the company has argued.
Apr. 29, 2024
The designation of iPadOS as a gatekeeper by the European Commission underscores the critical role Apple’s operating system plays in the digital ecosystem. As a gatekeeper, iPadOS is recognized for its substantial influence over market access for app developers and services. This status brings with it a set of obligations aimed at fostering competition and innovation, while preventing any unfair practices that could harm consumers and smaller businesses.
May 15, 2024
The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill will create a regime to empower the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to regulate and increase competition in digital markets.
The bill also updates powers to enforce competition law and resolve consumer disputes, and protects consumers from unfair commercial, subscription, prepayment and saving schemes.
May 7, 2024
Following the European Union’s lead with its Digital Markets Act (DMA), Turkey has embraced a formidable regulatory initiative aimed at comprehensively reshaping the activities of U.S. tech firms in its market. In early 2020, Turkey’s antitrust regulator, the Turkish Competition Authority (TCA), opened a sectoral investigation into e-commerce platforms that morphed into an even larger initiative. The TCA released a final report in 2022 identifying issues and recommending policy solutions that widened the scope to cover virtually all digital markets. The Turkish government was then swift to propose regulations, which have yet to be finalized. The draft amendment to Law No. 4054 on the Protection of Competition was issued to the public for feedback in October 2022. If adopted, these rules would constitute a separate structure for regulating digital firms, adjacent to traditional competition and consumer rules that apply to all companies operating in Turkey.
May 9, 2024
As the U.S. government retreats from weighing in with trading partners in favor of balanced treatment for its digital tech champions, one after the other, major markets are turning to the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) as inspiration for revamping their antitrust regimes. The DMA is an ex ante framework that regulates large tech players by laying out a set of blanket rules for all designated firms and imposing harsh penalties on violators. Now, Brazil, the world’s 11th largest economy, is joining a growing list of nations in formulating DMA-like ex ante legislation to regulate digital competition. As seen in the case of Turkey, however, Brazil’s take on the DMA could expand the authority of the country’s digital regulator even beyond the scope of the model EU legislation.
May 2, 2024
Korea’s antitrust watchdog has remedied self-preferencing concerns in digital markets for the first time as part of a merger review after conditionally clearing Kakao’s acquisition of a controlling stake in K-Pop giant SM Entertainment.
Apr. 30, 2024
Tech Latest by Nikkei Asia brings you the newest updates from Asia's technology industry. In this episode, Jada Nagumo is talking to Tokyo correspondent Ryohtaroh Satoh about Japan's antitrust actions against tech titan Google.
Apr. 17, 2024
The shape and maturity of the Japanese and Indian markets is reflected in their respective competition regimes – consolidation and refinement are key themes for Japan, while the last 12 months for India have been characterised by ambitious and large-scale change. The GCR Asia-Pacific Antitrust Review 2024 provides invaluable on-the-ground analysis of both country’s competition ecosystems, exploring the key trends of which those doing business in the region need to be aware.
Mar. 27, 2024
Uber has opposed ex-ante regulations for digital markets in India calling the current competition framework sufficient and stating that ex-ante interventions may discourage innovation.
Uber submitted its views to the Committee on Digital Competition Law (CDCL). A report by the CDCL on the matter of ex-ante regulation in India along with the draft Digital Competition Bill, 2024, was released by the Government on March 12.
Mar. 26, 2024
China has reportedly announced plans to ban the use of Intel and AMD chips, as well as Microsoft’s operating system, from government computers and servers. The measures, reported by the Financial Times (FT), aim to bolster the use of locally-made hardware and software while phasing out reliance on imported technology.
Sep. 5, 2023
The Competition Commission today gazetted the final terms of reference for its Media and Digital Platforms Market Inquiry, which will investigate the distribution of media content on South Africa’s digital platforms and the advertising technology markets that connect buyers and sellers of digital advertising.
