UK launches competition probe into digital advertising market

The UK Competition and Markets Authority wants to know if the digital advertising market is being corrupted by internet giants like Google and Facebook.

The investigation is being called the ‘Online platforms and digital advertising market study’ and it will look into the following:

So this seems to be a combination of a monopoly investigation and an audit of how digital platforms are handling personal data. The dominance of the Silicon Valley platforms over the digital advertising market seems clear, so the question is whether they abuse that dominance to unfairly crush competition. The matter of data privacy seems secondary, especially since there are already loads of similar investigations happening around the world.

“It is our job to ensure that companies innovate and compete,” explained CMA Chairman Andrew Tyrie. “And every bit as much, it’s our job to ensure that consumers are protected from detriment. Implementation of the Furman Report should help a lot. As part of the work announced today, we will be advising Government on how aspects of Furman can most effectively be implemented.

“Much about these fast-changing markets is a closed book to most people. The work we do will open them up to greater scrutiny, and should give Parliament and the public a better grip on what global online platforms are doing. These are global markets, so we should and will work more closely than before with authorities around the world, as we all consider new approaches to the challenges posed by them.

“The market study will examine concerns about how online platforms are using people’s personal data, including whether making this data available to advertisers in return for payment is producing good outcomes for consumers,” said CMA Chief Executive Andrea Coscelli. “The CMA will examine whether people have the skills, knowledge and control over how information about them is collected and used, so they can decide whether or not to share it in the first place.”

While they’re at it why don’t they do an investigation into how many people read the terms and conditions of using a service, let alone understand them. While there can be little doubt that online platforms have been very effective at monetising third party data, anyone who uses them for free and then claims to feel exploited is being disingenuous. Much more interesting will be the measures taken if they’re viewed as a harmful monopoly.