The first year of implementation of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) has set the stage for a new era in digital regulation. On 21 and 22 November 2024, ARTICLE 19 held its second annual symposium in Brussels, bringing together leading academics, representatives of the European Commission, technologists, and other key stakeholders to dissect what the implementation of the DMA looks like in practice, how its enforcement can be improved, and who it serves. This event highlighted the important role that independent scholars can play in effective enforcement of the DMA. It also underscored the impact of the DMA as legislation to look to when reining in the power of Big Tech.
Note: Where researchers have chosen to publish their work, it is available through hyperlinks in the programme.
Global resonance of the DMA
The DMA is the first legislation of its kind worldwide, designed to complement traditional anti-trust law by imposing a set of well-specified obligations on designated gatekeepers. As of December 2024, seven gatekeepers have been designated under the DMA: Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Booking, ByteDance, Meta, and Microsoft. Its pioneering framework has already contributed to a mix of early-stage and more developed legislative efforts globally, as jurisdictions including Australia, Brazil, and South Korea move closer to a shared vision of reining in the entrenched power of Big Tech. Over the two days, experts from the United States and Brazil shared policy perspectives on the DMA’s impact beyond the EU and what the EU can learn from other jurisdictions.
The DMA has now entered a pivotal phase of active enforcement and enforcers are employing its comprehensive toolkit to achieve effective compliance. Researchers explored a wide range of topics, ranging from the impact of the DMA on Google Maps to developers’ experiences of data portability API access to an examination of the thinking and reasoning behind the designation of gatekeepers. The discussions that followed reflected a consensus amongst participants that the European Commission’s effectiveness as the DMA enforcer cannot but be enhanced by the insights of independent academics and other stakeholders. Open discussions like these are rare, as the gatekeepers targeted by the DMA have vast resources to shape the policy discourse in their favour.
Malicious compliance calls for assertive enforcement from the Commission
Despite the 7 March 2024 deadline to fulfil the obligations of the DMA, it is evident that some gatekeepers are willing to go to great lengths to creatively circumvent them. This reaction, while unsurprising, highlights the impact these requirements have on their business models. Experts also showed that the path towards effective compliance is far from complete and Commission representatives expressed a similar preliminary assessment, particularly in cases where the Commission has promptly initiated non-compliance and specification proceedings against gatekeepers.
Given its limited resources, the Commission has had to adopt a pragmatic approach to enforcing the DMA. However, as emerged during the discussions, this approach has created some uncertainty about whether the DMA can truly deliver on its promise of contestability and fairness in digital markets. Whilst the DMA is designed to be flexible and adaptable in response to changes in technology and markets, the Commission must be prepared to move beyond regulatory dialogue and be an assertive enforcer.
Background
The second edition of the symposium was organised in collaboration with four university partners: the Amsterdam Centre for European Law and Governance, the Centre for Digital Governance at the Hertie School, the University of Trento, and the Université de Namur.
Following a call for abstracts, a scientific committee composed of lawyers, economists, and technologists selected 15 papers for discussion. A novel addition to last year’s inaugural event was a ‘bench’ of five independent technologists who offered their perspectives on what DMA implementation looks like at a technical level, providing for deeper examination of questions around privacy, encryption, interoperability, funding, and API access.
The programme can be viewed here. Where authors have chosen to publish their research, it can be accessed by clicking on the paper or chapter title in the programme. Those papers without a link are yet to be published.