ChatGPT is a data privacy nightmare, and we ought to be concerned

 ArsTechnica, here. 

ChatGPT itself on the same topic:

As we live in a world where technology is rapidly advancing, artificial intelligence and machine learning models have become an integral part of our lives. One of the most popular and powerful language models developed by OpenAI is ChatGPT. It is a state-of-the-art model that has been trained on a vast amount of data and can generate human-like responses to various questions. However, while ChatGPT has many benefits, it also raises serious concerns about privacy.

First and foremost, ChatGPT is trained on a massive amount of data, including text from various sources such as books, articles, and even conversations. This data is not necessarily public or anonymous, which means that it can contain sensitive information about individuals and organizations. This sensitive information can be used for malicious purposes, such as identity theft, financial fraud, or even cyberbullying.

Furthermore, the nature of language models like ChatGPT means that it can store vast amounts of data in its memory. This data can be accessed and used by anyone who has access to the model, and there is no guarantee that it will not be misused. In fact, there have been instances where language models have been used for unethical purposes, such as generating fake news or creating biased content.

Moreover, the use of ChatGPT raises serious ethical concerns about the right to privacy. As individuals and organizations continue to share more and more personal information online, they are putting their privacy at risk. If this data falls into the hands of malicious actors, it can be used to target individuals and organizations with malicious campaigns. Furthermore, there is no way for individuals and organizations to know how their data is being used by these models, and there is no way for them to opt out of this process.

In conclusion, while ChatGPT is a powerful tool that has many benefits, it also raises serious concerns about privacy. As the use of AI and machine learning models continues to grow, it is imperative that we take the necessary steps to protect individuals' and organizations' sensitive information. This includes ensuring that these models are trained on anonymous and public data, as well as implementing strict privacy policies to prevent the misuse of sensitive information. We must also consider the ethical implications of using these models, and work towards finding a balance between their benefits and the risks they pose to privacy.

When asked about ChatGPT's compliance with the GDPR:

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is

a regulation in EU law on data protection and privacy for all individuals within the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA). The regulation sets out the rules for how companies and organizations must handle personal data and ensure that the privacy of individuals is protected.

It is difficult to say definitively whether ChatGPT is compliant with the GDPR without a thorough review of how the model is used and how personal data is collected, processed, and stored. However, here are some considerations:

1. Purpose Limitation: The GDPR requires that personal data be collected for specified, explicit, and legitimate purposes. If ChatGPT is used for purposes that are not compliant with the GDPR, it may not be in compliance with the regulation.
2. Data Minimization: The GDPR requires that personal data be limited to what is necessary for the intended purpose. If ChatGPT collects more data than is necessary, it may not be in compliance with the regulation.
3. Transparency: The GDPR requires that individuals be informed about how their personal data is being used. If ChatGPT is not transparent about how personal data is collected, processed, and stored, it may not be in compliance with the regulation.
4. Data Security: The GDPR requires that personal data be securely processed and stored. If ChatGPT does not have appropriate security measures in place, it may not be in compliance with the regulation.

Overall, it is the responsibility of the entity using ChatGPT to ensure that the model is used in a way that is compliant with the GDPR. This includes conducting a data protection impact assessment, implementing appropriate technical and organizational measures to secure personal data, and providing individuals with clear information about how their personal data is being used.

There was a sudden system error, and then I asked again (exactly the same prompt) - getting a different answer:

As an AI model developed by OpenAI, ChatGPT is not subject to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which is a regulation in EU law on data protection and privacy for all individuals within the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA).

However, OpenAI takes data privacy and security seriously and has implemented measures to ensure that personal data is processed in accordance with applicable privacy laws, including the GDPR. If you are using ChatGPT in the EU or the EEA, it is the responsibility of the entity that controls the use of ChatGPT to comply with the GDPR and other applicable privacy laws.

If you have concerns about the use of ChatGPT and data privacy, I would recommend contacting OpenAI directly for more information.

What happened?

Study on the provision of information to consumers about the processing of vehicle-generated data

 EC, here. 

Internet Centralization: What Can Standards Do?

 IETF, here. 

Banning Noncompetes Is Good for Innovation

 M. Lemley, O. Lobel, here. 

Market Study Report on Mobile OS and Mobile App Distribution

 Japan FTC, here. 

How India is focusing on digital transformation during its G20 presidency

 IndiaNewsNetwork, here. 

Trotz Apple-Verbot: Google arbeitet an iOS-Browser mit eigener Engine

 Heise.de, hier. 

Competition and cooperation in artificial intelligence standard setting: Explaining emergent patternsn.

 N. von Ingersleben-Seip, here. 

Big techs in finance – implications for public policy

 BIS, here. 

Market Research: P2P Transfer Apps in Israel

 OECD, here. 

Meta/Within

 Order, here.

Luciano Floridi on ChatGPT, Singularitarians, Ethics etc.

 Podcast, here. 

A Pyrrhic Victory for Meta Over the FTC?

 M. Stoller, here. 

Judge said to reject FTC effort to block Meta’s VR acquisition

 Washington Post, here. 

There Are No Markets Anymore

 K. Birch, here. 

DRAFT REPORT on competition policy – annual report 2022

 EP, here. 

Urgent call to address issues highlighted by Commission services on access to in-vehicle data

 BEUC, here. 

PRODUKTVERKNÜPFUNG BEI SOFTWAREANGEBOTEN

 CISPE, hier.

EU Chief Technologist Wanted

 Here.

Big Data and Artificial Intelligence in Digital Finance

 J. Soldatos, D. Kyriazis, here. 

Digital Services Act: Commission provides guidance for online platforms and search engines on publication of user numbers in the EU

 Here.

DOJ v. Google

Lost debate, with D. Dayen (from 3:23), here. 

Meta Wins Court Nod to Buy Virtual Reality Startup in Loss for Khan’s FTC

 Bloomberg, here. 

COMPETITION IN THE MOBILE APPLICATION ECOSYSTEM

 US Department of Commerce, here. 

EU studying whether Big Tech should pay network costs -EU document

 MarketScreener, here. 

Do DMA obligations for gatekeepers create entitlements for business users?

 O. Andriychuk, here. 

Is the DMA the real AI regulation?

 The Tech Brief, here. 

DOJ Suit to Break Up Google Was Years in the Making for Antitrust Chief

 WSJ, here (and here). 

A discussion with James Bessen about his book "The New Goliaths"

 YouTube, here. 

Cutting Through the Jargon - Independent Audits in the Digital Services Act

 Mozilla, here. 

Deploying Network Analysis in Antitrust Law (Publications)

 Adlc, here. 

Study on the impact of recent developments in digital advertising on privacy, publishers and advertisers

 Report for the EC, here. 

A Case for Openness – Book Publishing and the Role of Amazon

 A. Kreutzmann-Gallash, S. Schroff, here. 

BEREC Report on the Internet Ecosystem

 Here.

Manipulative online practices found on 148 out of 399 online shops screened

 EC, here.

SHIFTING FROM OPEN BANKING TO OPEN FINANCE Results from the 2022 OECD survey on data sharing frameworks

 OECD, here. 

Should AI Start-Ups Make Us Re-evaluate Our Emphasis on Big Tech?

 E. Ranieris, here. 

Decoding the Hype About AI

 The MarkUp, here. 

DATENRAUM GESUNDHEIT: DIE LÖSUNG ETHISCHER FRAGE STELLUNGEN ALS VORAUSSET ZUNG FÜR INNOVATION IM GESUNDHEITSWESEN

 Initiative D21, hier. 

$6.6 billion fintech Wise accused by rival of harming competition

 CNBC, here. 

Will the Metaverse Be Entertaining? Ask South Korea.

 NYTimes, here. 

AI governance and human rights: Resetting the relationship

 Chatman House, here. 

AI Watch: Artificial Intelligence Standardisation Landscape Update

 JRC Technical Report, here. 

"More" here

What ChatGPT and the likes tell us about AI

 Euractiv, Tech Brief here. 

US Department of Justice sues Google, seeks to break up its ad tech business

 Geradin Partners, here. 

The Public Stakes of Consumer Law: The Environment, the Economy, Health, Disinformation, and Beyond

 R. Van Loo, here. 

NIST AI Risk Management Framework (AI RMF 1.0) Launch

 Here; Video here; 

πάντα ῥεῖ, alles stroomt

 ACM, hier. 

ANTITRUST INTEROPERABILITY REMEDIES

 H. Hovenkamp, here. 

Spamming the regulator: How Big Tech's 'economic consultants' undermine EU competition policy

 Corporate Europe, here. 

Merger control in the digital age – Challenges and development perspectives

 Bundeskartellamt, here. 

Stellungnahme der Bundesregierung: Sektorgutachten Nr. 12 der Monopolkommission „Telekommunikation 2021: Wettbewerb im Umbruch“

 Hier. 

Data-based business models explained while making toast for breakfast (maybe)

 

https://marketoonist.com/2023/01/evolution-of-smart-products.html… via

@tomfishburne

Darmstädter Forscher kritisieren Schwächen von ChatGPT

 Heise.de, hier. 

ICYMI: The first New Brandeisian decision in Europe? Insights from the Utah Statement

 S. Vezzoso (me), here (#3 most read Concurrences article in 2022, #9999999 most liked, I guess). 

Lasting Change in Competition Law and Policy

 S. Waller, here. 

From the lion's den: Incipient Merger Policy

 DoJ, here. 

A Pop Culture Guide to Antitrust

 S. Waller, here. 

Microsoft, GitHub, and OpenAI ask court to throw out AI copyright lawsuit

 The Verge, here. 

Tim Wu on Why the GOP’s Crusade Against Big Tech Is Baloney

 Intelligencer, here. 

BEREC report on interoperability of Number-Independent Interpersonal Communication Services (NI-ICS)

 Draft, still time to comment on it, here. 

Justice Department Sues Google for Monopolizing Digital Advertising Technologies

 PR, here.

Complaint, here,

App stores, antitrust and their links to net neutrality: A review of the European policy and academic debate leading to the EU Digital Markets Act

 C. Marsden, I. Brown, here. 

Google Meet and Zoom achieve bilateral interoperability

 AndroidPolice, here. 

Bundeskartellamt initiates proceeding against PayPal

 Bundeskartellamt, here, 

Google to make changes to Android business terms in India after antitrust blow

 TechCrunch, here. 

On-platform Tying or Another Case of Leveraging- A Discussion on Facebook Marketplace

 D. Mandrescu, here. 

Can the world’s de facto tech regulator really rein in AI?

 Codastory, here. 

How to Implement the DMA?

 CERRE, Panel here. 

CERRE Report, here. 

The Problem with Easy Technology

 T. Wu, here. 

Souveräner Datenaustausch als Enabler Künstlicher Intelligenz

 Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz (BMWK), hier.

Google zähmen

 Verfassungsblog, hier. 

That’s the Ticket: Promoting Competition and Protecting Consumers in Live Entertainment

 US Senate Hearing, here. 

Sustainability - Exploring the possible

 CMA, here, 

Data Governance: Value Orders and Jurisdictional Conflicts

A. Obendiek, here. 

URBAN DATA SHARING FOR THE PUBLIC INTEREST

 The New Institute, here.

A Pitched Battle on Corporate Power

 D. Dayen, here. 

Towards a Technological Overhaul of American Antitrust

G. Zhe Jin et al., here. 

(The MTA, 15 y. too late).

Meta’s New Year kicks off with over $410M in fresh EU privacy fines

 The Great Natasha (TechCrunch), here. 

Meta prohibited from using personal data for advertisement

 Noyb, here. 

Understanding Tech Platforms & Cloud Empires

V. Lehdonvirta, here. 

Remarks by Executive Vice-President Vestager on the decision to make binding commitments offered by Amazon

 Here. 

Warum Nutzer des Mixed-Reality-Headsets von Apple angeblich am Rad drehen

 Heise.de, hier. 

Read Microsoft’s response to the FTC’s Activision Blizzard lawsuit

 The Verge, here. 

Meta acquires Luxexcel, a smart eyewear company

 TechCrunch, here.

Who Should Guard the Gatekeepers: Does the DMA Replicate the Unworkable Test of Regulation 1/2003 to Settle Conflicts Between EU and National Laws?

 O. Brook, M. Eben, here. 

On-platform Tying or Another Case of Leveraging- A Discussion on Facebook Marketplace

 D. Mandrescu, here. 

The Economics of Amazon

 F. Etro, here. 

10 Punkte für nachhaltigen Wettbewerb als Grundpfeiler der sozialökologischen Marktwirtschaft

 BMWK, hier. 

Interoperability in digital markets

 I. Brown, Video here (from 2:21:19).

Apple's App Store and Competition: Opinion of a lobbying group

 Coalition for App fairness, here. 

Short-term accommodation rental services: data protection

 EDPS, here. 

Das sprachgewaltige Plappermaul

 E. Wolfangel, here. 

Dark Data: Produced by Students enrolled in David Carroll's course

 Here. 

AI Act: general Approach by the Council

 Here. 

"Artificial Intelligence co-regulation"

 C. Marsden, Video here. 

DMA & Self-Preferencing: Vanessa Turner (BEUC), Denis Sparas (DMA TaskForce), Gonçalo Machado Borges

Chez Oles Andriychuk,  Video, here. 

Amazon settles EU allegations regarding third-party sellers on Amazon Marketplace: some progress made but much remains to be done

 T. Smith, here. 

Unpacking 'commercial surveillance': The state of tracking

 EP Briefing, here. 

The European Commission buys into Amazon’s flawed commitments

 Balanced Economy, here. 

The GAFAM Empire: AN EXPLORATION OF ACQUISITIONS

 The Glassroom, here. 

The Half-a-Billion Fortnite Fine Kicks Off a New Era of Regulating User Interfaces

 Gizmodo, here. 

Courtroom updates in the matter of FTC v Meta/Within

 L. Hepner, here. 

Greek Final Report on the Sector Inquiry into Financial Technologies under article 40 of L. 3959/2011 - Executive Summary

 Here. 

An Indian DMA?

 ANTI-COMPETITIVE PRACTICES BY BIG TECH COMPANIES, here. 

Commission accepts commitments by Amazon barring it from using marketplace seller data, and ensuring equal access to Buy Box and Prime

 EC, Press Release here. 

European Data Summit 2022

 Day 1, Video. 

Day 2, Video.

Day 3, Video. 

Opinion 26/2022 on the Proposal for a Regulation on data collection and sharing relating to short-term accommodation rental services

 EDPS, here. 

A Roomba recorded a woman on the toilet. How did screenshots end up on Facebook?

 Technology Review, here. 

Fortnite Video Game Maker Epic Games to Pay More Than Half a Billion Dollars over FTC Allegations of Privacy Violations and Unwanted Charges

 FTC, here. 

Commission sends Statement of Objections to Meta over abusive practices benefiting Facebook Marketplace

 EC, here. 

Study for developing criteria for assessing reasonable compensation in the case of statutory data access right

 Study for the European Commission Directorate-General Justice and Consumers, here. 

Oral Argument Before the FTC: Illumina, Inc. and Grail, Inc.– December 13, 2022

 Video here. 

RIGHTS IN THE DIGITAL AGE

 OECD, here. 

HOW WILL THE AI ACT DEAL WITH OPEN SOURCE AI SYSTEMS?

 Open Future, here. 

AI as Systemic Risk in a Polycrisis

 A. Küsters, here. 

DATA SHAPING FIRMS AND MARKETS

 OECD, here. 

DATA IN AN EVOLVING TECHNOLOGICAL LANDSCAPE - THE CASE OF CONNECTED AND AUTOMATED VEHICLES

OECD, here.  

Opinion piece: The DSA also works “in the metaverse” – if it is enforced well

 J. Jaursch, here. 

The whole European Declaration on Digital Rights and Principles for the Digital Decade on one page

 Here.

Advocate General Rantos: The FIFA-UEFA rules under which any new competition is subject to prior approval are compatible with EU competition law

 CJEU, here. 

Merger review in digital and technology markets: Insights from national case law

 The Great V. Robertson for the EC, here. 

Merger Enforcement in Digital and Tech Markets: an Overview of the European Commission’s Practice

 EC, here. 

Practical information on implementation of the “Guidance on the application of the referral mechanism set out in Article 22 of the Merger Regulation to certain categories of cases”

 EC, here. 

Apple to Allow Outside App Stores in Overhaul Spurred by EU Laws

 Bloomberg, here. 

Mobile browsers and cloud gaming market investigation

 CMA, Statement of issues here. 

Der Weg zu einem Dateninstitut für Deutschland

 Bundesministerium für Wirtschaft und Klimaschutz (BMWK), hier. 

Ab ins Metaversum! Virtuelle Realitäten als Internet der Zukunft?

 Onlinekas, Video hier. 

IPEN Webinar on central bank digital currency

 Video, here. 

PRIVATE MESSAGING INTEROPERABILITY IN THE EU DIGITAL MARKETS ACT

 I. Brown, here. 

Menschenrechte im Digitalen

 FES, hier. 

Anhörung zum Web 3.0 und Metaverse

 Bundestag, hier. 

Sustainability and Competition Policy Enforcement

 Adlc, here. 

AG DSK „Microsoft-Onlinedienste“

Hier.  

FTC Seeks to Block Microsoft Corp.’s Acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Inc.

 FTC, here. 

Complaint here. 

Reminder: Case M.10001 - MICROSOFT / ZENIMAX

Inquiry into international digital platforms operated by Big Tech companies

 Senate Economics References Committee, Issues Paper, here. 

Enforcing the Digital Markets Act: Institutional Choices, Compliance, and Antitrust

 J. Crémer et al., here. 

Datenräume und Datenökosysteme – Erste Einordnung und aktueller Stand

 Bitkom, hier. 

Economic Opportunities in the Metaverse: A Policy Approach

 Meta itself, here. 

Ensuring the full potential of EHDS: Stakeholders’ recommendations on how to make the digital transformation a success across Europe

 Many Stakeholders, here. 

EHDS: Dead at Birth?

 Euractiv, here. 

H/T Malte

Régulation des algorithmes : où en est le projet-pilote Regalia ?

 Inria, ici. 

Internet as a Commons

 IGF 2022, Video here. 

Music and streaming: Final report

 CMA, here. 

UMG takes 49% stake in indie giant PIAS

 MusicWeek, here. 

The EHDS: European rules for trustworthy health innovation

 Digitaleurope, Video here. 

Effective and Proportionate Implementation of the DMA: The View of Some CERRE- Affiliated IO Economists

 Here. 

Commission fines styrene purchasers €157 million in cartel settlement

 EC, here. 

Sarah Cardell: Ensuring digital market outcomes that benefit people, businesses and the wider UK economy

 CMA, here. 

CONSUMER CREDIT DIRECTIVE: BEUC recommendations for trilogues

 Here. 

Andreas Schwab interviewed by Damien Geradin

 Video here. 

Apple's VR/AR plans

 Here. 

AI Act: Council Position

 Here. 

What's the future of data privacy? Engineering and invention in the world of data protection

 Video here. 

Online safety and data protection: A joint statement by Ofcom and the Information Commissioner’s Office

 DRCF, here. 

The platformisation of digital payments: The fabrication of consumer interest in the EU FinTech agenda

V. Ferrari, here.  

Online Consumer Data Collection and Data Privacy

 CRS, here. 

Competition in the metaverse

 Euractiv, Audio here. 

Mind The (Institutional) Gap: Digital Economy, Competition Law and The Toolkit Approach

 I. Lianos, here. 

Microsoft erfüllt und übertrifft europäische Datenschutzgesetze

 Microsoft, hier. 

Eliciting Values for Technology Design with Moral Philosophy: An Empirical Exploration of Effects and Shortcomings

K. Bednar, S. Spiekermann, here.  

Using Terms and Conditions to Apply Fundamental Rights to Content Moderation

 J. Quintais et al., here. 

The regulation of cloud computing: Getting it right

 D. Geradin et al., here. 

Réformer le droit européen de la concurrence : le retour du politique

 R. Repasi, here. 

The Alliance for Universal Digital Rights (AUDRi): Evolving Digital Principles

 Here. 

Ian Brown's Trento Guest Lecture/Discussion on DMA interoperability

Video here. 

A “Whack-a-mole monopolization machine”?“ Ecosystem” theories in digital platform mergers

 Video here

HARNESSING THE POWER OF AI AND EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES (such as the Metaverse)

 OECD, here. 

Protection des données et droit de la concurrence : Marie-Laure Denis intervient devant le collège de l’Autorité de la concurrence

 CNIL, ici, 

Department of Justice Opens Investigation Into Real Estate Tech Company Accused of Collusion with Landlords

 ProPublica, here. 

The AI Act: help or hindrance for SMEs?

 Intellera Consulting, here. 

Move responsibly and amend things: VR headsets can now be used without a Facebook account

 Bundeskartellamt, here.  Case summary here

Meta and Art. 19 a GWB, here (in German).

Overconfident Regulators Caused the Ticketmaster Mess

 NYTimes, here. 

Responses to uncertainty

 DRCF, here.

Disrupting Data Abuse: Protecting Consumers from Commercial Surveillance in the Online Ecosystem

 EPIC, here. 

The technologies underpinning the metaverse

techUK miniseries, here. 

Overlaps - Services and Harms in Scope

 CERRE, Video here. Report here. (Metaverse at 42:18 and again at 57:30 ff.)

How Should the EU Approach the Metaverse?

 DataInnovation, Video here. 

"The Brussels effect: Will Europe's AI regulation achieve global impact?"

 SNV, Video here. 

Mobile browsers and cloud gaming: CMA's market investigation

 CMA, here. 

Capitalism in the Age of Intellectual Monopoly

 State of Big Tech, here. 

Web3 and the Metaverse: Which Way for the Web?

 State of Big Tech, here. 

Taming Big Techification? The European Digital Markets Act

 State of Big Tech, here. 

The DSA has been published – now the difficult bit begins

 Verfassunsblog, here. 

Meta on its own capabilities

 Here. 

EDPS Comments on the Federal Trade Commission Trade Regulation Rule on Commercial Surveillance and Data Security

 EDPS, here. 

Digital Deep Dive -Data Act

DigitalEurope, video here. 

Euractiv, video here. 

BEUC Conference, video here. 

Can Big Tech Get Bigger? Microsoft Presses Governments to Say Yes.

 NYTimes, here. 

Protecting Consumers in Digital Environments

 

ACM, here. 

Fundamentals and Novelty

 Adlc, here.

"I expect the new frontier of antitrust enforcement to be about data collection, hoarding and usage in traditional industries such as the healthcare or automobile sectors and in the internet of things (IoT). To address this new challenge, we will have to cooperate closely with industry regulators and data protection authorities"

Digital Markets Acts (DMA): Was geht uns das an?

 Piltz Legal, hier. 

Unfair & Deceitful Commercial Surveillance

 TACD, OM, ICCL, here. 

Justice Dept. Is Said to Investigate Ticketmaster’s Parent Company

 NYTimes, here. 

Digital Markets Act Workshop: Fabiana Di Porto, Henry Mostyn, Marco Botta, Oles Andriychuk

 Video here. 

Mapping the post-ATT future of mobile free-to-play gaming

 Mobile Dev Memo, here. 

Did Google pay Activision Blizzard King $360 million for remaining on Google Play Store and not starting its own Android app store?

 Fosspatents, here. 

A CONSUMER CHECKLIST ON PROTECTING CONSUMERS FROM THE RISKS OF AI

 BEUC, here. 

THE FUTURE OF COMPETITION POLICY IN CANADA

 Gov of Canada, here. 

Meta’s internal use of data and the DMA

 ICCL, here. 

Rethinking data and rebalancing digital power

 Ada Lovelace Institute, here. 

Can Mastodon Survive Europe’s Digital Services Act?

 K. Komaitis, here. 

Commission opens in-depth investigation into the proposed acquisition of eTraveli by Booking

 EC, here. 

Discord and the GDPR

 CNIL, here (in French).

REMEDIES AND COMMITMENTS IN ABUSE CASES

 OECD, Background Note here.

Harnessing the power of AI and emerging technologies

 OECD Background Paper, here. 

How Should the EU Approach the Metaverse?

 Will we find out more about the still mysterious " concrete proposals on the metaverse due in 2023"? No guarantee but I registered: 

It’s TEEtime: Bringing User Sovereignty to Smartphones

 F. Groschupp et al., here. 

Digital Services Act: EU's landmark rules for online platforms enter into force [today]

 EC, here. 

Digital platform services inquiry - Interim report No. 5 – Regulatory reform

 ACCC, here. 

Provision of technical expertise in the context of investigations and compliance enforcement related to digital services markets

 EC, here (interesting read, trust me). 

Mastodon Safety: How To Protect Against Security and Privacy Risks

 Intego, here. 

DER DATA ACT LÄSST VIELES UNKLAR

 Videos, hier. 

EU Commission’s Executive Vice-President, on the Digital Services Act

 Reddit Talk, here (from roughly 8:00), here. 

GDPR AND THE AI ACT INTERPLAY: LESSONS FROM FPF’S ADM CASE-LAW REPORT

 FPF, here. 

Position on the European Health Data Space

 CPME, here. 

The Autorité hands out fines to Essilor International SAS and its parent company EssilorLuxottica SA for discriminatory trade practices

 Adlc, Press Release here. Decision in French ici; DeepL translation for my course, here. 

La CNMC multa al laboratorio Leadiant con 10,25 millones por vender a un precio excesivo su medicamento huérfano para el tratamiento de una enfermedad rara.

 CNMC, aquì.

Extension of ongoing proceedings against Amazon to also include an examination pursuant to Section 19a of the German Competition Act (GWB)

 Bundeskartellamt, here

25 State AGs supporting FTC’s opposition to Meta/Within acquisition

Here

New US FTC Commissioner Bedoya signals support for broad view of online privacy harms

 MLex, here. 

Web 3.0 and distributed ledger technologies – A regulatory perspective

 The great and only CMA, here. 

People, technologies & infrastructure – Europe's plan to thrive in the metaverse I Blog of Commissioner Thierry Breton

 T. Breton, here. 

How MEPs want to reshape the Data Act

 Euractiv, here. 

Privacy Sandbox under (my) radar: latest update report on the implementation of Google’s commitments published

 CMA, here. 

EDPS 2022 CONFERENCE REPORT: Effective enforcement in the digital world

 EDPS, here. 

Policy Statement Regarding the Scope of Unfair Methods of Competition Under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act

 FTC, here. 

Form Europe Data Economy Conference: This is not a Debriefing

I don't know this organization personally, and they did have sponsors who paid for a microphone on the panels, but I enjoyed the discussion (in parallel to doing not-so engaging things and also as an excuse to postpone the real serious stuff, perhaps).  No main takeaways from my side on this one (differently from what more renowned Blogs in the area are offering) but watch/listen to it if recorded. My live posts are on Mastodon

The 4th Annual European Data Economy Conference | 9 November 2022 (dataeconomy-conference.com)

EC seeks feedback on draft revised Market Definition Notice

Here.  

Will the DSA work?

 M. Husovec, here. 

ICN MWG Webinar on Control of Data, Market Power and Potential Competition in Merger Reviews

 Video here. 

Mergers: Commission opens in-depth investigation into the proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard by Microsoft

 EC, here. 

Regulation proposal on data collection and sharing relating to short-term accommodation rental services and amending Regulation (EU) 2018/1724

 Here. 

The New Roaring Twenties

 Utah Antitrust Symposium 2022, here. 

A “Whack-a-mole monopolization machine”?“. Ecosystem” theories in digital platform mergers

 CEPR, Video here. 

Blogging in chaotic times

 While we're migrating from Twitter to somewhere else.

Teaching Art. 102 TFEU: Judges

Looking forward to this new experience. I hope we will all have fun working on the self-preferencing case study (here the pdf of the presentation).

Post scriptum: great questions and very constructive atmosphere - I confessed at the beginning that I was very anxious about this class and they were very kind and understanding ❤. 

Resilience and Competition

 

The cutting-edge CMA just published this Report. 

Google enjoys paramount significance for competition across markets

The 173-page decision by the Bundeskartellamt determining Google's status of addressee of Section 19 (a) GWB has been published and even translated into English. The company's "paramount significance for competition across markets" has been confirmed (and accepted by Google itself). Much to read and ponder on (already not clear - at least to me -  how much Google in the end had to pay for the proceedings). 

Antitrust Olympus

Cristina Caffarra of CRA has single-handedly (as far as I "know" her) organized an impressive Conference with the Gods of our field  You can also join it virtually (as I'll be doing, thanks). 

An Historic Press Conference (with a Brandeisian reference): Break them open [but keep the break up option on the table]

Here.

Habemus the Digital Markets Act

 

On 24 March 2004 the European Commission fined Microsoft for abuse of dominant position (H/T Lewis Crofts). 18 years (age of maturity) later  on the same day, the Digital Markets Act was conclusively negotiated within the Trialogue. Papers and books will be written. 

In parallel to the final negotiations, a DMA panel was taking place at the Mannheim Centre for Competition and Innovation (MaCCI). With Inge Graef (Tilburg), Silke Hoffenfelder (Bundeskartellamt) and myself (Trento), moderated by Jens-Uwe Franck (Mannheim). The ones on the panel truly enjoyed it, unsure about the audience. A recording will be available soon.

On the eve of the DMA’s 4th Trialogue: A Twitter 🧵(not for the faint-hearted)

 Here.

« Wouldn’t it be nice to solve all such problems in one go? »

 

…famously said the former Competition  Commissioner Neelie Kroes in the long aftermath of the EU Microsoft case referring to interoperability issues caused by Big Tech. More than a decade after Kroes expressed that wish, the DMA moves exactly in this direction, with mandated interoperability for ancillary services *and* for so called horizontal interoperability of instant messaging (albeit limited to one-to-one communications with late openings with regard to group chats and calls), as it has been reported by the FT and Politico today.  More could be done, and the devil will likely be in the technical details of the obligations, of course, but it’d be a promising beginning. 

Competition law in war times

 Perhaps due to miopia, this is something we wouldn’t have expected to see in our so far rather peaceful European Union. The European Competition Network has just published a “ Joint statement by the European Competition Network (ECN) on the application of competition law in the context of the war in Ukraine”. 

A patron of digital competition

At the end of January, Google launched a "new dedicated Digital Assets Team". Today, Politico reported that "a group of progressive advocates are pushing Maxine Waters (D-Calif.), the head of the House Financial Services Committee, to hold a hearing on Google’s" new blockchain plans. As reported by Politico, differently from Facebook's grand plan with Libra/Diem, Google "is...looking to create a broader blockchain infrastructure that could be used by a wide variety of cryptocurrencies and other digital assets, and stressed that Google doesn’t “want to take sides in backing any specific currency.” Should we worry? Will the DMA protect us? Antitrust and financial minds in particular will likely need to come together to discuss this. If St. Isidore of Seville (painting: as imagined by Murillo) is the unofficial patron saint of the Internet, we could use a patron of digital competition too. Any candidate? 

One step ahead? The Italian Competition Authority sends detailed requests for information to major oil companies

 

After Germany and other countries, the Italian Autorità aims "to investigate the reasons for these increases and, if so, to assess whether there is scope for possible intervention limited only to the hypothesis of a possible infringement of the rules on abuse of a dominant position or agreements restricting competition"

Quo vadis, DMA?

 

Are we fiddling while competition processes in the digital economy are "burning"? Not quite, according to the excellent Speakers at a conference which took place today (also online and for free, many thanks), organized by Concurrences. (BTW, this is not a conference debriefing à la  D'Kart, so don't expect to be informed while being entertained). The urgency we are in, however, was clearly expressed by Andreas Mundt by saying that "we don't have the time to wait for Court decisions". He also expanded on the many ways in which "his" 19a GWB was way better than the DMA. My conference-tweeting as stream of consciousness starts here. 

Among the many enriching statements and discussions, voilà some points that were particularly dear to me.  

1) The DMA is already part of a broader picture: this was directly recalled by Thibault Schrepel in the first panel and indirectly in the third panel while discussing the competition issues related to the Internet of Things (see the Data Act in particular).

 

2) In order to properly enforce the DMA, we need a lot of data scientists. A figure, you ask? Out of the 220 staff suggested by Andreas Schwab, at least 50, proposes Yann Guthmann of the French competition authority (#moretechnologicalapproach as advocated since a famous Munich Conference - not that one). 

3) Almost everybody still wondered what contestability and fairness actually meant. I would have preferred openness instead of contestability, which economically has a very precise and perhaps not very helpful meaning in this context. But, c'est la vie! At any rate, contestability/openness and fairness point to a process rather than to an outcome (e.g., low prices), which is excellent. 

4) Le diable se cache dans les détails of the DMA. Indeed, big date for final negotiations 24th March - lightning speed according to Margrethe Vestager, we'll see...

5) Avis cloud computing of the Adlc: beginning 2023. Competition enforcement only after that date, if necessary? (And: see again Data Act).

6) Lawyers (especially those in private practice) expect aspire to DMA litigations from Day One. This is new stuff, vehemently opposed by some the most powerful  companies in the world.  Along similar lines, Andreas Mundt is already quite concerned about the Court's (only *one* and not too unresponsive, generally) expectations regarding how Sec. 19a should be applied. Google settled, but what about the other gatekeepers potentially in scope? 

7) We need (also) to discuss public interest in the DMA, beyond contestability and fairness. 

8) There might even be court-sponsored spillovers from the DMA to competition law (see the Google Shopping ruling for inspiration). 

We will again be discussing the DMA next week in Mannheim, I am afraid (exactly on the 24th).

Teuer, expensive, chère, cara...

Robert Habeck, the German Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate, asked the German Competition Authority (per Tweet?) to assess weather mineral oil companies were behaving abusively ("Could be"). The Bundeskartellamt replied by press release (only in German at the time of writing). The Authority is not concerned with oil price swings per se, but "[I]f crude oil prices now fall again and petrol station prices do not follow suit or even rise further, we have to take a close look. This includes several market levels: from the crude oil market to the refineries and wholesalers to the petrol station operators." How national are these markets (still) today, actually? 

MGM's Bauchschmerzen

 

The European Commission approved Amazon's acquisition of MGM Holdings Inc. Personally, I felt some Bauchschmerzen. 

Meta's exclusionary conduct in South Africa referred to the Competition Tribunal

 

We have a press release and a very nice interview with Competition Commissioner Bonakele (with a shut out to Sec. 19a GWB). 

Net Zero-relevant markets

The CMA has launched a Sustainability Taskforce, namely "a cross-organisational taskforce dedicated to sustainability issues". Among other things, it commits to "launching at least 1 new market study in a Net Zero-relevant market in the next financial year".

Libra's Post-Mortem - Novi Resuscitati?

The CFPB's Director, Rohit Chopra, gave a TV interview yesterday. While Libra might be no more, he made clear that "cryptocurrencies + Big Tech" might still pose issues and that the Biden administration is getting ready to anticipate them. 

One of Biden Executive Order's Many Sprouts

President Biden's Executive Order on Promoting Competition in the American Economy never stops giving. The US Department of Agriculture has just announced that "[a]s part of its efforts to enhance fair and competitive markets, USDA is requesting comments and information from the public about the impacts of concentration and market power in fertilizer, seeds and other agricultural inputs, and retail" 

Byzantine splits

One of the strangest things about US antitrust policy to my European eyeballs has always been the byzantine split between the FTC and the DOJ on merger enforcement. Interagency collaboration as well as the very hot discussions on modernizing merger guidelines are on the agenda of an upcoming Spring Enforcers Summit (4 April). 

I need that source.

 At a panel organized during the Industrial Organization Meeting, Spring 2022, Carl Shapiro famously called himself a Modernist and others New Brandeisians (see here, fn. 7). While the recordings of the other panels are still available (one click away on the meeting's website), this is not (while it has been for a while: I caught up a few hours after the panel took place). This is a real pity for us interested in following the recent developments in antitrust policy thinking. Please NBER, put it up again. 

Stellar Wars in the Antitrust Sky?

The antitrust news of the day so far (10. 52 AM CET) is the parallel opening of investigations in the UK and the EU into the Jedi Blue allegation. Interestingly, the CMA is signalling again that the DMU politicians' time is up, this time by starting "scrutinising Google’s conduct in relation to header bidding services more widely to see if the firm abused a dominant position and gained an unfair advantage over competitors trying to provide a similar service".