Germany To Update Its Laws To Tackle Market Power Of Digital Giants

Germany is modernizing its competition law to stand up to digital corporations. In the future, the Cartel Office will be able to act faster and tougher when companies dominate the market,  EURACTIV Germany reported.

The dominant market position of a few digital companies, such as Facebook and Amazon, has long been a thorn in the side of European competition watchdogs.

While they discuss EU-wide regulation in Brussels, Germany is moving ahead. On Thursday, January 14, the Bundestag will pass an amendment to the “Act against Restraints of Competition,” or “GWB” for short.

The core objective of the reform is to make competition in the digital space fairer – or, in some sectors, to ensure that there is real competition again.

“The amendment therefore contains a moderate modernisation to the oversight of unfair competition to better record and effectively put an end to the abuse of market power, especially by digital platforms,” states the final draft of the law, which was made available to EURACTIV Germany.

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.