Notes for journalists: Following a 39-month investigation, the European Commission finally announced its decision in the Android case last month, imposing a fine of €4.34 billion and requiring that Google bring an end to its infringing behaviour within 90 days or face penalty fines of up to 5% of the average daily worldwide turnover of their…
The UK Government has announced that it is establishing an expert panel led by Jason Furman, Harvard Professor and economic adviser to former US President Barack Obama, in order to examine the impact of digital technology companies on competition and consumer behaviour. The announcement was made along with the publication of a government report on…
The House of Lords Select Committee on Communications has made a series of recommendations on UK Advertising in a Digital Age. The Government has issued its response to the recommendations “for which the Government is directly responsible.” The Committee recommended (Recommendation 2) that where businesses fail to self-regulate adequately, the Government should propose legislation to…
It has been reported today that the UK Government sees free-to-use digital services as raising antitrust issues. In a response to a House of Lords Select Committee on Communications inquiry, UK advertising in a digital age, the Government indicates that “digital services – particularly those that are free-to-use and funded by advertising – pose challenges…
Preiskel & Co’s David Allen Green advised the Open Rights Group in relation to their intervention in various ISPs’ Supreme Court Appeal, Cartier International AG and others (Respondents) v British Telecommunications Plc and another (Appellants), [2018] UKSC 28. The appellants were the five largest internet service providers (ISPs) in the UK, while the respondents were…
In an effort to limit the resale of event tickets for extortionate prices in the secondary market, the government has enacted the Breaching of Limits on Ticket Sales Regulations 2018, which came into force on 5 July 2018. The problem the statutory instrument attempts to address is the use of specific software, or “bots” to…
Diane Coyle has published a fascinating paper on potential reform to competition policy to address issues caused by digital platforms. The paper is available here an interesting read. Issues addressed in the paper include: Difficulties defining a multi-sided platform. Undue focus upon short-term pricing elements in competition assessments. The impact of dominance in the digital…
As automation increasingly takes over our economy, what will be the impact on economics? Adair Turner has given a fascinating lecture on the topic, called Capitalism in the Age of Robots. His lecture is available here. Focusing on the impact of robotics on work, income and wealth in the 21st century, he goes as far…
Preiskel & Co Partner, Tim Cowen, has co-authored a report with Phillip Blond, published with the support of the Big Innovation Centre, and ResPublica, entitled “Technopoly” and what to do about it: Reform, Redress and Regulation. A fascinating read, the paper takes an overview of the current competition framework, and makes important suggestions for reform.…
The Capitol Forum has published its latest update on the Google Shopping remedy, available here.
Preiskel & Co Partner, Tim Cowen, is quoted. Please email Tim with any questions relating to the Google Shopping case, the Google cases, or competition law generally.
