An Open Letter has been sent to Margrethe Vestager about Google Remedies on behalf of ICOMP, Foundem, Fairsearch, and a number of other competing comparison shopping services. An interesting read; given the recent Android decision, will similar issues arise in relation to remedies? Please contact Tim Cowen if you have any questions regarding the European…
Following a 39-month investigation, the European Commission has finally announced its decision in the Android case, 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 parent company, Alphabet.…
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.…
Another twist in the road for the Sky/Fox merger. Disney has raised its bid for 21st Century Fox’s assets to $71.3bn, while stepping up its commitments with regards to the Sky/Fox acquisition. Disney has committed to funding Sky News to the tune of £100m a year for the next 15 years, increasing its previous funding…
The CMA have concluded their consultation on merger thresholds. The proposal is to apply lower turnover thresholds for transactions within three “Relevant Enterprises” (development or production for military or civilian use, quantum technology and computing hardware). The CMA published additional guidance on 11 June 2018 with a summary of responses to the consultation. The CMA…
Tim Cowen spoke at the ICF Global Summit Smart Cities event on Tuesday 5th June which was organised by the Digital Policy Alliance. In addition to the All Party Parliamentary Select Committee report on issues to be addressed, three main issues also appear to be important when cities are looking to become smarter. The…
The government has implemented its plans to amend the merger control thresholds in order to address national security concerns, initially set out in a Green Paper in October. In May the government published the Enterprise Act 2002 (Share of Supply Test) (Amendment) Order 2018 and the Enterprise Act 2002 (Turnover Test) (Amendment) Order 2018, which…
