Ten Things to Know About the ACCC’s Digital Platforms Inquiry

Abstract

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has completed its landmark inquiry into Digital Platforms and produced a lengthy final report with extensive recommendations to Government. This short note reflects on why the inquiry is considered ground-breaking and crystallises its major findings and recommendations into ten key take-outs as they relate to competition in relevant markets. The analysis finds good reason for the international interest that the inquiry has attracted. The final report confirms a growing global consensus on the dominance of Google and Facebook in online activity. It commits the ACCC to a long term program of capacity-building to meet the competition law enforcement challenges posed by digital markets. However, it takes a cautious approach on regulating for competition. At the same time, the ACCC recommends a suite of regulatory measures to deal with market failures involving asymmetric information and bargaining power affecting consumers and business users.

Keywords: competition, ACCC

JEL Classification: K21