Competition Law & Regulation of Digital Platforms - Key Themes Explored

Introduction

Generally, digital platforms are defined in terms of ‘typical’ characteristics or in terms of their ‘strategic’ or ‘gatekeeper’ status.

They are increasingly a focus of competition regulators and policymakers in the UK, EU and internationally.

A key question is whether to establish ex ante economic regulation of ‘digital platforms’, with or without ‘enhanced’ competition law - and what form any regulatory structures might take.

Much of the policy focus has been on the largest digital platforms, whose parent companies are broadly recognised to have wide-ranging influence over large parts of the economy or the online environment, understood to encompass Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon and Microsoft but the debate extends to smaller significant platforms such as Uber and AirBnb.

This new webinar provides an exploration of how digital platforms are increasingly a focus of competition and regulatory authorities.

What You Will Learn

This webinar will cover the following:

• The features of digital platforms which have attracted competition law and regulatory scrutiny
• Examples of recent and ongoing reform initiatives including the UK Digital Markets Unit, the European Commission’s Digital Markets Act and US state antitrust probes into Big Tech
• Emerging challenges for the regulation of digital platforms and the problem of definition of digital platforms that should be in scope of regulation
• Ongoing policy interventions and issues relating to digital platforms outside of mainstream competition law including state aid, and national security issues

This webinar was recorded on 7th March 2022