A better competition policy for EU's digital economy

Digital business models such as social media platforms, ride sharing apps, and e-commerce marketplaces enable billions of individuals and firms to interact and transact with each other every day. Their rapid growth has given rise to criticism that they are “winner-take-all” businesses that have created an unrivaled advantage through their network effects that entice more and more users to join, and through their acquisition of potential competitors and ancillary businesses.

Both the United States and Europe are currently debating the merits of these arguments—including whether antitrust law should be retailored to address them. In 2020, Nextrade CEO Kati Suominen worked with Center for Strategic and International Studies on assessing European Commission and several member states' efforts to significantly expand their antitrust powers to curb market-leading technology companies' planned mergers and acquisitions and forcing them to provide access to the data they have gathered—to the benefit of European competitors.

She concludes Europe’s policy proposals are founded on reams of assumptions that lack an empirical basis, risk of politicization and overenforcement. Some of her recommendations can be found here.