Australia introduced a law on Monday that could fine global technology companies as much as Rs 50 million (USD 33 million or about Rs 279 million) if they curb competition and prevent consumers from switching between services.
The left-wing Labor government targets Big Tech’s influence, and parliament passed a law last week that bans social media for children under the age of 16.
The proposed law will enable Australian competition regulators to monitor compliance, investigate anti-competitive practices and excellent companies online.
“The digital economy challenges our current legal framework,” Jones will say in a speech viewed by Reuters at the Institute for Public Policy Studies in Sydney.
“Major platforms can charge higher costs, reduce choices, and use sneaky strategies to lock consumers into using certain products. Innovation outside of established players is nearly impossible.”
Apple, Google and Meta dominate app downloads and advertising revenue, without responding immediately when commenting on proposed laws.
The consulting process is scheduled to end on February 14, with more discussions to prepare for the draft legislation.
Planning laws similar to the EU Digital Markets Act legislation could make it easier for people to move in competitive services such as social media platforms, internet browsers and app stores.
According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s recommendations, the government can choose the platform that poses the greatest risk to the risk of competition.
“Initially, we will seek to prioritize the specific obligations of the application market and advertising technology services,” Jones said.
These specific obligations will limit companies to push low-rated apps to the top of their search lists compared to third parties and prevent favorable treatment for their services.
The Competition Commission’s 2022 report on digital platform services shows that Australia’s Google controls 93% to 95% of online search services, while Apple’s App Store accounts for about 60% of APP downloads and 40% of Google Play Store.
Meta Platforms’ Facebook and Instagram together provide 79% of the country’s social media services.
©Thomson Reuters 2024
(This story has not been edited by Tech Word News’s staff and is automatically generated from the joint feed.)
