In defence of judicial review: The established UK appeal standard is the best approach for a dynamic digital economy

As readers of this blog will know, the UK’s Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers ("DMCC") Bill seeks to create a brand-new ex ante regulatory framework for firms with ‘strategic market status’ ("SMS"), defined as firms that hold substantial and entrenched market power in a digital activity, that provides them with a position of strategic significance. … Continue reading In defence of judicial review: The established UK appeal standard is the best approach for a dynamic digital economy →

Why the Proposed Commitments offered by Google to the UK competition authority regarding in-app purchases are wrong and will make the situation of app developers worse

Introduction On 19 April 2023, the Competition and Markets Authority (“CMA”) issued a consultation over the commitments proposed by Google (the “Proposed Commitments”) to bring the CMA’s investigation into its conduct in relation to Google’s distribution of apps on Android devices in the UK to an end. The consultation period ended on Friday 19 May … Continue reading Why the Proposed Commitments offered by Google to the UK competition authority regarding in-app purchases are wrong and will make the situation of app developers worse →

Fashionably late:  The UK digital markets legislation starts its passage through Parliament

More than four years after the Furman Report, the British Government has laid its Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill before Parliament.  However, what is perhaps more remarkable than the delays is how closely the Bill sticks to the CMA’s original recommendations. One can always quibble over some of the drafting, but overall this is … Continue reading Fashionably late:  The UK digital markets legislation starts its passage through Parliament →

The draft Media Bill: The UK’s take on prominence and findability regulation in the digital era

Photo by Marianna on Pexels.com The UK Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport recently published the draft Media Bill. This is an initiative that media organisations operating in the UK (and beyond) have been eagerly anticipating, for it will determine media policy in a post-Brexit Britain. The Media Bill may also serve as a blueprint … Continue reading The draft Media Bill: The UK’s take on prominence and findability regulation in the digital era →

Into Uncharted Waters – Making sense of the CAT’s Apple/CMA judgment

In November last year, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) started a market investigation into the supply of web browsers and browser engines on mobile devices, and the distribution of cloud gaming services through app stores on mobile devices. However, Apple appealed the CMA’s decision to make a market investigation reference (MIR) in the … Continue reading Into Uncharted Waters – Making sense of the CAT’s Apple/CMA judgment →

Spinning Amazon’s Flywheel: How Amazon’s Business Model Harms Competition

Regular readers of this blog may have noticed that we’ve been writing more about Amazon. We believe competition law has not yet fully grappled with its multifaceted business model, which has the Prime membership bundle of products at its core. Damien Geradin and I are therefore pleased to share our detailed paper on Amazon’s business … Continue reading Spinning Amazon’s Flywheel: How Amazon’s Business Model Harms Competition →

Interview with Tom Fish, Head of public policy and research at Gener8, and formerly Assistant Director at the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority

Tom Smith, Geradin Partners: November 2022 was an important month for the UK’s efforts to curb the power of big tech. The Chancellor announced in his Autumn Statement that the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Bill will be introduced into parliament in the 3rd parliamentary session (it is currently rumoured to be scheduled for April … Continue reading Interview with Tom Fish, Head of public policy and research at Gener8, and formerly Assistant Director at the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority →

Making sense of NCAs’ roles under the DMA – The Dutch proposal

In the run-up to the enactment of the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), the European Commission strongly defended its exclusive jurisdiction to enforce it. Despite valiant efforts on the part of several national competition authorities (NCAs) who wanted a formal role enforcing the new rules, the Commission’s exclusive competence remains largely in place in the … Continue reading Making sense of NCAs’ roles under the DMA – The Dutch proposal →

The DMA is coming. Here’s what it will mean for mobile gaming

The App Store and Play Store are huge profit generators for Apple and Google. As explained by Judge Gonzalez Rogers in her Epic v Apple judgment of September 2021, gaming apps account for approximately 70% of all App Store revenues. According to some, this means that Apple makes more money from games than Microsoft, Sony, … Continue reading The DMA is coming. Here’s what it will mean for mobile gaming →

The Responsible Online Commerce Coalition (ROCC): Businesses team up to ensure a level playing field in e-commerce

Amazon’s revenues reached half a trillion dollars in 2022, having increased tenfold in a decade. There are few companies as fascinating and impressive as Amazon and arguably no other company occupies such a central position in the modern retail economy in the US and Europe. Its famous e-commerce platform represents more than half of e-commerce … Continue reading The Responsible Online Commerce Coalition (ROCC): Businesses team up to ensure a level playing field in e-commerce →