“Big Tech control is one of the few ideas that all world leaders seem to subscribe to”

Tribune. In today’s geopolitical environment, world leaders agree on very little. The control of Big Tech, however, is one of the few ideas that everyone seems to subscribe to. From the European Union (EU) to the United States and all the way to China, authorities are turning to antitrust laws to regulate the market power of large tech companies to promote fairer and more competitive economies. In the years to come, we will probably experience an even stronger dynamic, redefining the functioning of relations between markets and States.

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Big Techs are accused of promoting their own products in their online marketplaces, abusing their privileged access to consumer data for competitive advantage, and annihilating competition by buying out any business that could threaten their market. market position. These practices make consumers dependent on the products and services offered by a handful of large corporations.

It was the EU that led the way, based on competition law. Over the past ten years, the European Commission has completed three antitrust investigations against Google, which resulted in more than 8 billion euros in fines. She is currently investigating Google and Facebook’s advertising technologies and data collection methods, the App Store and Apple’s mobile payment systems, and how the Amazon marketplace works.

“The Brussels effect”

Noting that these antitrust legal actions are not enough, the Commission proposed, in 2020, a directive on digital markets (Digital Markets Act, DMA), which would give it new powers against the technological giants and the so-called companies. “Gatekeepers”, which connect businesses to end users. This legislation would make it possible to ban outright a certain number of practices, such as preferential self-referencing or the use of competitor data. DMA is expected to have a global impact, as large multinationals tend to model their global operations sooner or later on EU rules (the so-called “Brussels effect”).

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Until recently, the United States was content to watch the EU put in place laws against large American technology companies. But, as technolibertaries continue to attribute these European actions to envious protectionism, US regulators and lawmakers are increasingly questioning whether or not the unhindered market is producing desirable results.

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