CMA calls for competition regulation reform with new pro-competition regime

Article summary

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has recommended that the government introduce a ‘new pro-competition regulatory regime’, which will aim to better manage the behaviour of major platforms funded by digital advertising such as Google and Facebook. The CMA’s recommendation follows the conclusion of its year-long analysis of the markets, where it ‘used its statutory information gathering powers’ to review exactly how advertising revenues drive the business models of major platforms. Among the CMA’s key concerns is that Google and Facebook shared 80% of the £14bn UK expenditure on digital advertising in 2019 (£500 per household average), with Google benefitting from over a 90% share of the £7.3bn search advertising market, and Facebook with over 50% of the £5.5bn display advertising market.