The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) is intensifying efforts to impose UK-style regulations on leading tech companies, including Google, Meta and Apple, to foster competition and curtail market dominance, reports The Australian.
The regulator terms these tech behemoths as "serial acquirers", warning that their burgeoning roles in generative artificial intelligence (AI) could marginalise smaller competitors.
The initiative comes as the ACCC's five-year inquiry into the local market power of these digital titans nears its conclusion.
The regulatory body is advocating for opening up app stores to more developers and has been in talks with the federal government to implement action.
What is the UK model
Freedom of information documents released by the Treasury unveil that the ACCC has drawn from a briefing document by the UK Department of Business and Trade.
The document outlines a "pro-competition regime for digital markets," urging Google and Apple to diversify their app stores by permitting more developers, subject to adequate security protocols.
The British government requests the tech firms to stop favouring their own business on app stores or “in some cases distorting competition between third parties” and allow users access to alternative app stores, subject to meeting “reasonable” and “sufficient” security conditions.
Social media advertising a concern
The ACCC points to the opaqueness surrounding advertising on social media platforms as a concerning area, citing that it elevates costs for consumers.
ACCC Chairwoman Gina Cass-Gottlieb has emphasised that this lack of transparency hampers informed decisions among advertisers and publishers, thereby affecting consumer costs indirectly.
“Without transparency, publishers are unable to maximise their advertising revenue, and advertisers are unable to maximise their advertising spend. This increases costs, which are ultimately passed on to consumers, ” she said.