Why industry regulation of tech is coming, and what it will look like

Shortcomings in antitrust enforcement are causing jurisdictions around the world to consider industry regulation of tech. But instead of sweeping utility-like regulation, so far those efforts are targeting specific sectors such as digital platforms and particular conduct that is outside the reach of traditional competition laws.  

After years of analysis, debate, and enforcement efforts, policymakers are realizing that competition laws cannot deal with many of the social and economic problems created by the proliferation of digital platforms. The EU, UK, Australia, and Japan are taking a hard look at sector-specific regulation to deal with issues related to data access and unfair business practices that overlap with antitrust issues but cannot be clearly regulated by those laws. These new rules will redefine the legal landscape for online platforms and be a testing ground for industry regulation in other tech sectors.

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Interim report signals expansive study of digital advertising by Japan’s JFTC

An interim report on a study of digital advertising done by the competition authority of Japan signals an expansive look at antitrust, data privacy, and consumer protection concerns sharing the hallmarks of recent enforcement against digital platforms in Europe.

Digital advertising platforms are services (offered by companies like Facebook and Google) connecting online publishers who want to sell advertising space to advertisers who want to pay to use that space. The interim report (which does not mention any specific platforms) contains initial factual findings from surveys sent to the various market players by the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC).1https://www.jftc.go.jp/en/pressreleases/yearly-2020/April/200428.html

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Japan ramping up digital platform regulation with mixed toolkit

In keeping with trends seen among active enforcers around the world, Japan is ramping up digital platform regulation with a toolkit that includes a mix of data privacy, competition, and consumer protection considerations.

Japan’s most recent efforts are a draft bill proposing a new platform regulation to ensure transparent and fair dealing with users and vendors on digital platforms.

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