A coalition of prominent technology and media firms has united in expressing apprehensions through an open letter, accusing major tech entities, such as Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft, of not adhering to the European Union's (EU) upcoming digital competition regulations.
"The signatories of this letter represent thousands of businesses affected by the DMA. They urge the gatekeepers to engage as soon as possible with business users and other stakeholders, such as business and consumer associations, in a constructive dialogue and make swift progress on their proposed compliance solutions," the open letter reads, according to CNBC.
(COMBO) This combination of pictures created on April 25, 2023 shows logos of online platforms, applications, social networks and technology and IT companies of Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Wikipedia, Pinterest, AliExpress, Facebook, Meta, Apple app store ,Snapchat, Linkedin, Youtube, Instagram, Twitter, Tik Tok and fashion retailer Zalando. The European Union on April 25, 2023 designated 19 online platforms, including Instagram, TikTok and Twitter, as having user numbers so big they will come under stricter regulatory rules for content.
Corporations Identified as 'Gatekeepers'
The signatories, representing a cross-section of the industry, argued that corporations identified as "gatekeepers" by the EU, such as Google, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, and ByteDance (the parent company of TikTok), have failed to engage adequately with them and their counterparts in the sector.
In line with the EU's Digital Markets Act, companies boasting more than 45 million monthly active users and a market capitalization surpassing 75 billion euros ($81.2 billion) are classified as gatekeepers.
These entities are obliged to ensure that their messaging applications are compatible with those of competitors. Furthermore, users should be allowed to select pre-installed applications on their devices.
An additional critical requirement mandates gatekeepers to refrain from practices that could unduly favor their services over others, commonly known as "self-preferencing."
'Failed to Engage'
The open letter, endorsed by entities like Schibsted, Ecosia, Qwant, Element, and ProtonVPN, claimed that gatekeepers "have either failed to engage in a dialogue with third parties or have presented solutions falling short of compliance with the DMA."
It also highlighted an alleged lack of transparency for businesses and consumers regarding the future landscape after March 7, 2024, a crucial deadline for all six major tech gatekeepers to bring their operations in line with the Digital Markets Act.
The signatories, representing numerous businesses affected by the DMA, called for prompt engagement from gatekeepers in constructive dialogues with business users and other stakeholders. They emphasized the urgency for substantial progress on proposed compliance solutions.
Furthermore, the letter urged the European Commission and the European Parliament to leverage their authority to ensure gatekeepers comply "with both the letter and spirit of the DMA," starting from March 7.
The 24 companies signing the letter include Adevinta, Allegro, Billiger.de, Ceneo, CompareGroup, Ecosia, Element, Favi, Heureka Group, Idealo, Kelkoo, Ladenzeile, Le Guide.com, OLX, Open-Xchange, Panther Holding GmbH, Preis.de, Prisjakt, Proton, Qwant, Runnea, Schibsted, Solute, and Vipps.
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