Australia

The Australian competition landscape has been dominated this year by two proposed major policy changes by the Labor government. First, the government aspires to a stronger and better merger law...

By Leandra Diem* & Barbora Jedličková**   The concept of competition law as it relates to public procurement is not a particularly common topic of discussion in Australia. Unlike in Switzerland...

Sitting as it does at the intersection between economics and law, competition law poses particular challenges for judges. Is it time to consider more innovative methods of adducing and assessing...

By Jacqueline Downes, Melissa Camp, & Dominic Page1 I. Introduction In its latest report in the ACCC’s ongoing Digital Platforms Services Inquiry 2020-2025 (DPSI),2 the Australian regulator has found that Meta has significant market power in the supply of social media services and faces weak competitive constraints from other platforms. The ACCC also made findings […]

By Brenda Yuanyuan Xiong*   Introduction The relationship between competition law and economic regulation has evolved from a state of conflict to one of mutual recognition. Competition law is aimed at preventing anti-competitive behaviors and strengthening market mechanisms, while economic regulation imposes constraints on business conduct to address market failures.1 The Organization for Economic Co-operation […]

By Jacqueline Downes, Bella Cameron and Jamie Hick1   I. Introduction This piece builds on our previous articles and publications2 covering the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) examination of developments in digital platforms through its ongoing Digital Platforms Services Inquiry 2020-2025 (DPSI).3 The DPSI follows the ACCC’s original Digital Platforms Inquiry Final Report (DPI […]

A new sense of urgency and purpose has enlivened our international conversations about digital platforms, stimulating unprecedented levels of co-operation between competition and consumer authorities globally. In addition to conducting our own inquiries and reporting to Australian lawmakers, international co-operation has been crucial in informing the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s current thinking on the […]

By Mel Marquis & Rhonda Smith1   I. Introduction In the nearly 50-year saga of modern Australian competition law, the section relating to the misuse of market power has recently been substantially revised. The revisions include removal of the requirement to establish a nexus between substantial market power and the alleged anti-competitive conduct and the […]

After 11 years as Chair of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission in this article Rod Sims reflects on a range of antitrust issues, emphasising their importance to our economy more broadly. There is much here to promote reflection and discussion within the antitrust community. He takes a broad look at the objective of antitrust, […]

This article reviews the legislative framework which underlies Australian competition law and policy. First, the Australian Constitution plays a key although often unrecognized role in preventing interstate restrictions on competition.  Second, Australia’s famed National Competition Policy which comprehensively reviewed and removed unnecessary legislative and other government restrictions on competition over a ten-year period from the […]

This article surveys two recent Australian regulatory developments which highlight the critical role of competition law and voluntary industry standards in regulating gig work. In particular, the class exemption for small business collective bargaining that was recently introduced by the federal Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (“ACCC”) presents important opportunities for platform workers to enhance […]

By Jacqueline Downes, Melissa Camp and Bella Cameron1   I. Introduction This piece builds on our previous articles2 covering the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC) examination of developments in digital platforms through its ongoing Digital Platforms Services Inquiry 2020-2025 (DPSI).3 The DPSI follows the ACCC’s original Digital Platforms Inquiry Final Report (DPI Final Report), […]