Shaping Competition in the Digital Age (SCiDA) – Principles, tools and institutions of digital regulation in the UK, Germany and the EU

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Rupprecht Podszun
• Subject Area: Private Law
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 528025333

The role of law for the economy is to provide the framework that makes markets function. When the logic of markets changes - how does the law follow up? Three jurisdictions – Germany, the United Kingdom and the European Union - are introducing new and ambitious regimes to tame the power of digital gatekeepers, i.e. companies such as Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Meta (Facebook) or Apple. While motivated by similar normative goals, Germany, the UK and the EU take different approaches to implement these goals. It is the answer in these jurisdictions to the disruptive changes of the platform economy. The respective rules are § 19a of the German competition act, the new Digital Markets Unit at the Competition & Markets Authority in the UK, and the Digital Markets Act on the EU level. In our research project “Shaping Competition in the Digital Age (SCiDA)” we will accompany the regulatory initiatives from the beginning and aim to answer three fundamental questions: (1) Documenting Change: How do the new rules in the different jurisdictions work in practice? (2) Diagnosing Progress: What proves effective for reaching the goals of the new rules? (3) Developing Concepts: What are elements of the new normative and institutional framework for safeguarding competition in the digital age? With the project, - we monitor how the new rules for the digital economy are enforced in the UK, Germany and on the EU level, - we identify underlying enforcement principles and policies, - we develop concrete proposals from a comparative perspective on how to improve digital regulation so that the jurisdictions can profit from each other’s experiences, and - we suggest overarching models, based on substantive principles and enforcement techniques, for a future framework that can shape competition in digital markets. Over the course of three years, we aim to produce three tangible work products: - We will make available a database of digital regulation covering Germany, the UK and the EU. This database will be an important resource for experts dealing primarily with the three jurisdictions. Further, we anticipate big global interest in the outcomes of the project, since a systemic recalibration of the rules for digital markets is now a world-wide phenomenon. It may also be the basis for adding further jurisdictions at a later stage. - We will provide input to consultations and reviews that are foreseen in all three jurisdictions. This input is scholarly-based and unbiased and draws from the comparison of the three approaches. - We will produce a handbook detailing best practices and principles for shaping competition in digital markets. This work will serve as a point of reference for advancing the theoretical framework of the regulatory reforms of competition in digital markets - for the three selected jurisdictions, as well as for the broader international regulatory environment.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: United Kingdom
• Partner Organisation: Arts and Humanities Research Council
• Cooperation Partner: Professor Oles Andriychuk