Grandstand. The Digital Market Act (DMA), controversial European legislation on the control of digital giants, is on track. A political agreement between the Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers was reached on the evening of March 24, which makes it possible to envisage rapid adoption.
This ambitious text aims to monitor the giants of the sector which outrageously dominate certain markets: Google for search engines, Amazon for online sales, Meta (Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, etc.) for social networks, Microsoft for systems operating.
These companies are considered to be “access controllers” : their power is such that they can block the entry of new competitors if they wish, and easily expand into new segments – notably through tied sales or takeovers of competitors. Hence the need for special monitoring, established by this legislation.
A conviction for “abuse of a dominant position”
Immediately, the accusation of protectionism is brandished, because the main target of the legislation is the Gafam (Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple and Microsoft) Americans. However, the European Union does not condemn the domination of a market, but the abuse of this dominant position. The DMA therefore draws up a list of behaviors that are prohibited or particularly monitored. Some European companies, such as the German SAP or the French Vivendi, would therefore also be targeted by the legislation, which would make it possible to avoid the wrath of Washington (“ Which platforms will be caught by the Digital Markets Act? The ‘gatekeeper’ dilemma”, Mario Mariniello and Catarina Martins, “Bruegel Blog”, December 14, 2021). Tensions are recurrent between the two sides of the Atlantic, from the proceedings of the Commission against IBM for “abuse of a dominant position” in 1984 to the current disputes with Gafam, via the Microsoft trials led by the dynamic Commissioner to competition Mario Monti (1999-2004).
Then, the Gafam are not designated as a single target, otherwise the legislation would indeed be condemned as discriminatory, since it would target only one country. The text therefore establishes criteria, for example of turnover or number of users, making it possible to determine who these “access controllers” to be particularly monitored.
Make life easier for consumers
Sign of its importance, the DMA has created a coalition of opponents. Some of the companies targeted, such as Google, vilified it, believing that it would affect innovation and the quality of service provided to consumers. For many specialists in competition law, the text is suspect, because it establishes a law of opportunity, targeting only certain companies, and certain behaviors.
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