Europe’s DMA goes to the world – CEPA

Governments from the UK to Japan are copying the European Digital Markets Act even before the new law comes into force.

It’s called the “Brussels effect.” The innovative regulations adopted by the European Union have spread around the world. It happened regarding the General Data Protection Regulation and privacy. That’s likely to happen with DMA, which is designed to reign as the world’s biggest digital gatekeeper, from Alphabet to Microsoft.

Governments around the world are preparing to impose their own versions of the DMA. Some places, like Japan, are more focused and targeted than Europe. Surprisingly, other countries, including the UK, may end up being more widespread as well. The United States stands out for its reliance on old-fashioned antitrust laws.

Copycat criminals are emerging before Europe’s own laws come into force and before their success and usefulness can be evaluated.

Here is a summary of the most notable initiatives:

• Japan: In contrast to the UK’s broader market, Tokyo targets a few narrower markets, primarily app stores. A bill expected to be introduced in Congress this year would give the Fair Trade Commission the power to force Apple and Google to allow third-party app stores and payment systems.

  Japanese companies will be able to run their own game stores on iOS devices and use payment systems provided by Japanese fintech companies at lower rates than those charged by Apple. Details will be finalized this spring.

  When it comes to search, the proposed legislation could prevent Google from giving preferential treatment to its own services and displaying its own flight and restaurant reservation tools higher in search results.

  According to reports, Japanese companies will not be targeted.

• England: Before Brexit, the UK positioned itself to be free from the EU’s digital overregulation. Instead, the company has emerged as a tough cop, threatening to break encryption on messaging apps and working to significantly expand antitrust authorities’ powers against digital market leaders.

  Under the Digital Markets Competition and Consumer Bill, which is expected to be enacted this year, large tech companies deemed to have a “strategic market position” will be able to open up their data to competing search engines and expand their app stores. It will be necessary to reconsider the current situation and strengthen competition with rival search engines. Post fake online reviews and ease subscription lock-ins. Like the DMA, its goal is to reduce the “undue control” a small number of technology companies have over consumers and businesses. Companies that violate the new law will be subject to fines of up to 10% of their global turnover. The UK antitrust enforcer’s digital markets division will decide which companies will be designated for single market status.

  Overall, the new bill is similar to the EU’s DMA, but in some respects it is even more stringent. The DMA excludes certain concentrated markets such as video streaming and certain businesses such as Amazon Prime from scrutiny, but the UK bill could eventually include these. And the DMA has not addressed the scourge of fake reviews or eased digital subscription cancellations.

• South Korea: In December 2023, the Korea Fair Trade Commission announced a law on “promotion of platform competition” modeled on the DMA. In addition to targeting US tech companies, it also included South Korea’s own internet conglomerates such as search engine Naver and messaging app Kakao.

  Similar to the DMA, the Fair Trade Commission said the law would designate certain dominant platforms and restrict their activities. The bill follows the 2022 amendments to the Korean Telecommunications Business Act to prevent large platforms, particularly Apple and Google, from forcing developers to use in-app payment systems.

  However, the bill has now been postponed due to opposition from South Korean industry and the US government.

• Brazil: South America’s largest country is a copycat. Its proposed bill, 2768, mimics the DMA and would subject companies with “significant access control powers” (or “gatekeepers” in European parlance) to loosely defined rules and obligations. is. The bill currently awaits comments from the Congressional Rapporteur. The US technology industry has expressed strong opposition.
• Mexico: Mexico is focusing on e-commerce instead of extensive regulation. The competition authority released a preliminary report naming two marketplaces, Mercado Libre and Amazon, which together hold an 85% share of the e-commerce market. Regulators are proposing that these platforms separate video streaming from online shopping loyalty programs such as Prime. , increasing transparency to help sellers better understand how their products are selected and ranked in search results, and the priority given to their products by sellers using their own logistics services. Exit.
• turkey: A draft amendment to the Turkish Competition Law is expected to be passed this year. Like the DMA, it targets “businesses with significant market power.” Prohibitions include prohibitions on self-prioritization and prohibitions on tying together different digital services. Messaging services need to be able to interoperate with other apps.
• South Africa: In July 2023, the South African Competition Commission published a report on ‘online intermediary platforms’. It targets apps from Google and Apple, among other services, and requires that consumers be allowed to pay for services outside of the App Store.
• India: The government is considering a new DMA-style regulatory approach to apply to “systemically important digital intermediaries”. However, no official announcement has been made.
• Australia: The five-year study into digital platform services is finally expected to be completed in March 2025.