Google, Apple, and Other Technological Giants Anticipated to Contest Digital Markets Act
One of the EU's top judges said on Friday that tech companies will certainly fight a new rule intended to limit their dominance in the EU, with the first cases in a possible wave of litigation expected by year's end.
In accordance with the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which became effective in November, online platforms with more than 45 million users would be categorised as gatekeepers.
Gatekeeper companies, who control data and platform access, are subject to a set of rules that include maintaining their messaging systems interoperable and refraining from providing priority to their own products and services.
The DMA's list of gatekeepers is anticipated to be made public on September 6 and is likely to include Alphabet's Google, Meta, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft.
Marc van der Woude, the president of the General Court, predicts that people who disagree with the label and requirements will probably bring a complaint there in the upcoming months.
Also Read: Google, Apple to undergo thorough CMA investigation for dominance of mobile browsers.
The General Court, a branch of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), considers cases spanning a variety of subjects, including competition law and trade.
During a meeting organised by the European Commission, he predicted that we would witness the first examples by the year's end or the start of the next one.
Some people, notably Google and Apple, have openly resisted the DMA.
It said in March 2022 that it was still concerned that certain DMA regulations would unnecessarily jeopardise the privacy and security of its clients while other requirements would prevent it from charging for the intellectual property it had invested a lot of money in.
Google voiced concern that the new rules will impede innovation and echoed the same sentiments.
Van der Woude asserts that the DMA is a dynamic entity.
"Together with its responsibilities and implementing legislation, this DMA is a living organism that is always being scrutinised. Therefore, if I may say, it will be a lawyer's paradise "said he.
The DMA's enforcement, the gatekeeper designation, and the specifics of their duties, according to him, will probably be the key points of controversy.
Van der Woude expects the problems of whether such arrangements meet the threshold for regulatory examination and whether gatekeepers must inform the Commission of their acquisitions to be challenging.
