Australia’s Big Tech Rules to Mirror EU’s DMA—Focus on App Stores and AdTech

Key Takeaways

• The Australian government plans to introduce new competition rules for Big Tech companies.
• The proposed regulation resembles the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA).
• Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones said AdTech and app stores will be a priority for the government.

When the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) entered into force in 2023, regulators wasted little time using it to crack down on anticompetitive conduct among Big Tech companies.

Hoping to follow a similar path, the Australian government proposed new legislation on Monday, Dec. 2, that could help open up digital markets to greater competition.

Big Tech Competition Regulation

As in the EU, Australia’s proposed new law  recognizes that a digital economy in which large platforms control the flow of web traffic, information and money is susceptible to uncompetitive business practices.

As such, emerging Big Tech regulations acknowledge that platform operators may require special oversight to prevent them from abusing their dominance.

“The dominant platforms can charge higher costs, reduce choice, and use sneaky tactics to lock consumers into using certain products,” Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones will say in a speech.

The planned law would make it easier for people to move among competing services, including social media platforms, internet browsers and app stores,” Reuters reported.

Meanwhile, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) would be granted new powers to enforce the rules and penalize companies for non-compliance.

The proposed legislation could have a profound impact on how Big Tech firms operate in the country.

In the EU, once the DMA entered into force last year, within months, the European Commission launched  investigations into Alphabet, Apple and Meta—three Silicon Valley giants deemed “gatekeepers” under the act.

The First Wave of DMA Enforcement

In the case  against Apple, the Commission is investigating restrictions the company uses that limit consumer choice. These include terms that prevent app developers from steering customers away from the App Store’s inbuilt payment and distribution channels.

A second probe scrutinizes how Google uses its significant influence across web and software markets to give preference to its services and lock out rivals.

Regarding Meta, the Commission is investigating the company’s “pay or consent” model, which requires users to choose between handing over their data or paying for ad-free services.

App Stores and AdTech

Whereas the EU has used the DMA to launch sweeping attacks against unfair Big Tech dominance, Jones’s speech will highlight Australia’s more targeted approach.

“Initially, we will look to prioritize app marketplaces and ad tech services for service-specific obligations,” he is expected to say on Monday.

Alongside developments in Europe and America, his comments reflect an emerging regulatory consensus to open up two of the most tightly controlled digital markets.

In the U.S., for instance, Google faces charges from the Justice Department that it operates an illegal AdTech monopoly. Meanwhile, the impact of Epic Games’ victory in a yearslong dispute over Google Play policies is already being felt.

App stores and AdTech are also likely to emerge as two key battlefronts in the EU’s ongoing Alphabet and Apple DMA probes.