Margrethe Vestager, executive vice president of the Commission, announced that the European Union will begin enforcement of the Digital Markets Act in spring 2023. This was first reported
by TechCrunch. Vestager stated earlier that the new antitrust legislation which introduces new rules to limit the power of Big Tech could be implemented as soon as October this year.
Vestager stated that the DMA would enter into effect next spring and that we are preparing for enforcement as soon the first notifications come in.” Vestager made this statement during her speech at ICN. TechCrunch noted Vestager’s suggestion that the Commission would be ready to take action against violations by “gatekeepers”, which is a category that includes Meta and Apple, Google, Microsoft, Microsoft, and Amazon, as soon as the laws are in force.
The DMA, which is still awaiting final approval by the Council and Parliament defines gatekeepers to be companies with a market capitalization exceeding EUR75 billion ($82billion) and that own a social media platform or app with at least 45,000,000 monthly users. If found violating the DMA’s rules these entities could face fines up to 10% of their total worldwide turnover for the preceding year. A fee that could rise to 20% in the event of a second offense.
The DMA will give gatekeepers three months to report their status to the Commission. After that, they can wait up to two months for confirmation from the EU. The delay in enforcement of the DMA could mean that there won’t be any real battles between Big Tech and the EU until 2023.
“This is the next chapter. Vestager explained that it requires a lot more concrete preparations. It’s all about creating new structures within the Commission… It is about hiring staff. It is about setting up the IT systems. It involves drafting additional legal texts regarding procedures and notification forms. We are currently preparing for these tasks and will be able to present the new structures as soon as possible.
The delay in the DMA’s enforcement may give the Commission more time for preparation, but TechCrunch warns that the delay could be a catalyst for criticism if the Commission does not address major violations that occurred between now and when the DMA is made law.