The UK’s competition policy has long been ripe for an overhaul. Brexit has focused minds on the critical issue of state aid, but even bigger forces are at work; the rise of Big Tech is forcing regulators everywhere to reassess their policies. Traditional antitrust rules are not fit for purpose in a digital age. Conventional thinking on monopolies focuses on consumer pricing — but that way of looking at competition has little relevance when consumers are paying for services not with money but their personal data.
The pandemic has increased the power of the large technology companies. People have relied on the likes of Amazon, Facebook and others to facilitate remote working, socialising and shopping. At the same time, many of their bricks and mortar rivals have been suffering amid the economic restrictions imposed to curb the spread of coronavirus, accelerating the need for action.
The Competition and Markets Authority, Britain’s regulator, has become one…