The report focuses in particular on markets in which services are provided by multi-sided platforms. These include search engines, social networks and parts of the e-commerce sector. In many of these markets, which are often advertising-funded, user data has become a factor relevant to competition. In the Monopolies Commission’s view, both the multi-sided nature of these services and the significance of data should be given greater consideration in competition policy assessments.
Specific regulation of internet-based services – such as that currently being discussed in public, particularly in relation to search engines – does not appear necessary from today’s perspective. Instead, the Monopolies Commission recommends adjustments to existing competition law. For instance, the scope of merger control should be expanded so that acquisitions of companies with only modest turnover can also be subject to competition law scrutiny. In view of the dynamic nature of digital markets and the high complexity of the competition issues arising in this area, the Monopolkommission also recommends changes to procedural law governing antitrust abuse proceedings.
In the Monopolies Commission’s view, the unlawful exploitation of protected content and data on the internet should be countered by further developing copyright, data protection and consumer protection rights at national and European level, in order to improve the enforceability of the individual rights of users and content providers. Against this background, the Federal Government should work towards the rigorous implementation of data protection in the planned European General Data Protection Regulation.
Distortions of competition, such as those that may arise in so-called ‘sharing economy’ services due to asymmetric regulation of conventional services on the one hand and new digital services on the other, are a consequence of the emergence of innovative business models. In such contexts, there is often a knee-jerk call to subject new competitors to existing regulation. The Monopolies Commission recommends that the opposite approach also be considered: exempting established companies from regulation.
