EU digital economy competition policy: From ex-post to ex-ante. The case of Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Meta

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    Since 2007, the European Commission (EC) has opened numerous competition cases regarding Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Meta (AAAM). Enforcement, however, has remained elusive, prompting a new regulatory paradigm in the EU known as the Digital Markets Act. In this study, we analyze the EC’s competition policy approach regarding big tech with an emphasis on AAAM. Rather than implementing a consumer welfare friendly neoclassic economics analysis, we adopt a critical political economy of communications (CPE) approach to analyze these cases. The article explores whether EU competition policy does enough to yield the required measures to preserve a healthy digital economy sector for political and social welfare as much as for consumer welfare.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)24-38
    Number of pages15
    JournalGlobal Media and China
    Volume8
    Issue number1
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Mar 2023

    Keywords

    • Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta
    • communications policy
    • digital economy sector
    • digital markets act
    • EU competition policy
    • platformization
    • political economy of communication
    • public interest

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