An industry body representing companies, Asia Internet Coalition, which represents companies like Google, Twitter, and Meta criticised and termed the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance’s advice to bring in a digital competition law and its full fledged report on Big Tech firms’ anti-competitive policies as ‘absolutist’ and ‘regressive’.
“The AIC is concerned that the digital competition law recommended by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance may dampen digital innovation in India”, the AIC said in a statement from January 6.
It advised the government to conduct broad consultations with stakeholders to “new legislative proposals meet international best practices, are evidence-based, and are for the purpose of benefiting innovation, growth, and consumers”.
The AIC’s members constitute of Amazon, Meta, Google, Twitter, Meta, LinkedIn, and so on. In it’s report of December 23, the committee advised that India should upgrade its competition law to address the unique needs of the digital market.
It also said in the report that a digital markets unit needs to be established within the commission, with experts who could look after systematically important digital intermediaries (SIDIs) and upcoming SIDIs and also offer suggestions to the Centre.
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance labelled the advertisement business of Big Tech as a “monopolist threat”, and said that it gives these companies “an unfair edge over the market”.
The committee has suggested that India should upgrade its competition law to address the unique needs of the digital market.
In the report “Anti Competitive Practices by Big Tech Companies”, tabled in the Parliament on December 22, the committee said that Big Tech companies “owned every step in a system that connected ad sellers and buyers”, giving them an unfair edge.
It said a systematically important digital intermediary (SIDI) should not process the personal data of users with the help of third parties which make use of the core services of the platform.
The committee said, “It should provide advertisers, information on a daily basis, regarding price paid by the advertiser and the remuneration received by the publisher.”
(Photo Illustration by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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