Press release

CMA hosts first two-day digital summit of G7 competition heads

皇冠体育app CMA is today hosting the first dedicated 2-day summit with the heads of the G7 competition authorities to discuss cooperation across digital markets.

Picture of the G7 logo

皇冠体育app Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) will today welcome heads of the G7 authorities and guests to its London headquarters for the agenda-setting event. 皇冠体育app G7 Digital Competition Enforcers Summit will strengthen relationships between international competition authorities and look to increase collaboration on issues related to competition in digital markets.

皇冠体育app Summit offers a unique opportunity for international agencies to discuss various questions, including on emerging issues such as in relation to large digital platforms, app stores, online marketplaces, digital advertising, mobile ecosystems, cloud computing and algorithms. It also provides an opportunity for attendees to consider areas for potential collaboration and reflect on how best to use their skills, knowledge, and resources to deal with challenges in digital markets.

皇冠体育appse discussions come at a seminal point, with the need to address the challenges of digital markets and big tech one of the most important issues facing governments and competition authorities around the world.

皇冠体育app Summit and related work have come out of the UK鈥檚 G7 Presidency, with the CMA tasked with using its status as a leading competition authority to convene international partners. 皇冠体育app aim is to find coherent and complementary ways to encourage competition and support innovation. It builds on previous collaboration between the CMA and its international counterparts.

This will be the first time that the G7 (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, UK, USA, with the EU) competition heads have specifically come together to discuss these issues with the heads of competition authorities from the G7 guest countries (Australia, India, South Africa, South Korea).

In order to capture some of the work that the G7 competition authorities are doing, they will today jointly publish a compendium. 皇冠体育app document outlines each authority鈥檚 work in addressing competition issues in digital markets and highlights shared approaches and tactics.

皇冠体育appse include:

  • opening investigations and studies, or bringing enforcement actions;
  • developing specialist teams staffed with technical experts;
  • considering or introducing legislative reforms to bolster enforcement tools or introducing new regulatory regimes;
  • and ensuring regulatory cooperation domestically and internationally.

皇冠体育app compendium will inform future cooperation and coordination including through existing competition international forums, as well as provide a resource for governments and other policymakers.

Andrea Coscelli, Chief Executive of the CMA, said:

Tech businesses are at the heart of many all-important services for consumers and businesses, so it is crucial that they can continue to thrive. Yet currently too much market power is concentrated in the hands of too few firms. Whether in online shopping, web searches or social media, companies like Apple, Google, Amazon and Facebook exert an unprecedented level of influence over our lives.

皇冠体育appse global challenges require a coordinated global聽response,聽which is why this Summit is so vital.

As the leaders of G7 competition authorities, we recognise that joint action across international jurisdictions is needed to ensure big tech鈥檚 dominance is not harmful to people and businesses, wherever they may call home.

Today is an important step towards the increased collaboration that will enable lasting positive change in digital markets around the world.

皇冠体育app CMA is one of the leading global authorities taking steps to address competition concerns in digital markets. It has established the Digital Markets Unit (DMU) to give consumers more choice and control over their data as well as promote online competition and crack down on unfair practices. 皇冠体育app DMU launched in shadow form in April and the government has recently consulted on introducing legislation which will give it the powers it needs to oversee a new regulatory regime for the most powerful digital firms, promoting greater competition and innovation.

皇冠体育app CMA is also part of the Digital Regulation Co-operation Forum (DRCF), alongside the UK鈥檚 Information Commissioner鈥檚 Office, Ofcom and the Financial Conduct Authority. 皇冠体育app DRCF was formed in July 2020, building on the strong working relationships between these organisations, to ensure a greater level of cooperation and tackle the unique challenges posed by regulation of online platforms.

皇冠体育app DRCF is now launching a new programme of work to uncover digital regulation issues. Separately from the Summit, DRCF members are today taking part in a panel discussion hosted by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) at the Future Tech Forum, to discuss this programme. As part of the programme of work going forward, stakeholders in the digital sector are encouraged to get in touch about any concerns.

皇冠体育app CMA has a number of ongoing investigations into issues in digital markets. 皇冠体育appse include investigating Google鈥檚 鈥榩rivacy sandbox鈥�, Facebook鈥檚 use of ad data, Apple鈥檚 AppStore, as well as a market study into mobile ecosystems. Through its powers to investigate mergers, it is also investigating the acquisition of Giphy by Facebook (now Meta Platforms), after provisionally finding that this deal raised competition concerns.

Notes to editors

  1. In April 2021, the G7 Digital Enforcers Summit was announced in the G7 Digital and Technology Track Ministerial Declaration.
  2. 皇冠体育app G7 and guests will publish a Compendium of approaches to improving competition in digital markets on Monday 29 November 2021.
  3. Stakeholders on the digital sector who wish to get in touch about the DRCF鈥檚 programme of work can do so via [email protected]

Updates to this page

Published 29 November 2021