The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
(ACCC) has released a Preliminary Report in its Digital Platforms
Inquiry. If its preliminary recommendations are adopted, there will
be significant ramifications (and an increased regulatory burden)
not only for major digital platforms, but also potentially for
smaller, specialised platforms, media businesses, advertisers and
advertising intermediaries.
BACKGROUND
The Inquiry is examining the impact of 'digital
platforms' – i.e. search engines, social media and
digital content aggregation platforms – on competition in
media and advertising services markets.1 Specifically,
it is looking at the effect of digital platforms on media content
creators, advertisers and consumers, with a particular focus on
consequences for the supply of news and journalistic content.
