Sarah Cardell to tell Silicon Valley tech conference the new regime will be ‘evidence-based, targeted and proportionate’
The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has today published an overview of how it intends to operate the new digital markets competition regime as currently proposed by the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Bill.
The document, which comes in response to a request from UK government ministers, details the principles that will guide the CMA’s approach to its new role. This will include tailoring the CMA’s actions to the specific problems that are identified; focusing on where it can have the most impact for people, businesses, and the UK economy; engaging with a wide range of stakeholders; and operating with transparency.
The CMA also plans to convene groups representing UK consumers, businesses and tech professionals that will be consulted and help prioritise its work. This is in addition to the 9 tech experts appointed last year, who have been assisting the CMA in preparing for the new regime.
The document provides an overview of the outcomes the CMA will seek to achieve and the issues it will seek to address and sets out 11 principles underpinning how the CMA will carry out its new digital markets role.
The digital markets competition regime will only apply to firms designated by the CMA, following an evidence-based investigation and public consultation, as having Strategic Market Status (SMS) in relation to one or more digital activities. The CMA expects to start 3 to 4 SMS investigations within the first year of the new regime coming into force. Once a firm is designated with SMS, the CMA can then take action to address or prevent problems.
If the CMA finds businesses are using their status to gain an unfair competitive advantage, it will take targeted and proportionate action to address the behaviour. In some cases, this will mean imposing conduct requirements on firms in relation to the digital activity for which they have been designated. These could, for example, include:
Widespread stakeholder engagement will be critical to the success of the new regime and the publication of the overview document coincides with a senior CMA delegation visiting the US West Coast to meet a wide range of major digital firms to explain how the new digital markets regime will operate and gain a deeper understanding of their businesses and operating environments.
Speaking at the annual Concurrences ‘Tech Antitrust’ Conference in Silicon Valley, Sarah Cardell – Chief Executive of the CMA – is expected to say:
Notes To Editors