Tech giants have captured the attention of competition agencies
around the world. As we have previously shared, the FTC is in the
midst of a series of hearings on Competition and Consumer
Protection in the 21st Century, including sessions on
Big Data, Privacy, and Competition and the
Antitrust Framework for Evaluating Acquisitions of Potential or
Nascent Competitors in Digital Marketplaces. Multiple European
regulators (the
EU,
Germany and now Austria) recently launched investigations into
Amazon. Technology platforms are a priority for many other
enforcers as well, from China to Australia to the UK.
With different competition authorities weighing in on how to
assess tech competition, there is the potential for divergence in
intensity of enforcement as well as whether existing competition
doctrine suffices. Disparities are borne out by recent statements
emanating from U.S., Australian, and UK competition agencies and
officials.
