The PPA, the News Media Association, the BBC, ITN, Publishers Association, Channel 4, Radiocentre and AOP have emphasised to the Prime Minister that legislation is necessary to rebalance the relationship between platforms and creators of trusted content, ultimately benefiting audiences.

The letter states: “The UK has also led on the solution to begin tackling these harms, with the creation of the DMU. We believe the DMU can tackle the root causes of large platforms’ market power, rebalancing the relationship between platforms and creators of trusted and much-loved content. This will be critical in ensuring the sustainability of the UK’s vibrant media sector, ensuring fair value and treatment for creators of content, and ultimately benefitting audiences.”

What will the Digital Markets Unit do?

The DMU will oversee a new regulatory regime for the most powerful digital firms, promoting greater competition and innovation in these markets and protecting consumers and businesses from unfair practices. A code of conduct will be established, setting out clear principles to protect consumers and businesses from exploitation and prevent competitors from practices that undermine fair competition. Further, the DMU will be able to make procompetitive interventions to drive competition and innovation.

What is the Code of Conduct?

The code of conduct will promote three key objectives – fair trading, open choices, and trust and transparency – guiding firms’ behaviour to prevent anticompetitive outcomes before they occur.

Practices that the code will aim to prevent include:

– Entrenching and protecting market power – where a firm uses contractual terms or its wider ecosystem of products to unreasonably restrict the ability of others to compete

– Extending market power – where a firm uses its position in a regulated activity to unfairly extend its market power into related activities

– Exploitative conduct – for example, where a firm uses unfair or unreasonable contract terms

What does the Code of Conduct mean for publishers?

Here are some key publisher-relevant remedies that the DMU’s Codes of Conduct could implement:

– Ensure platforms provide publishers with sufficient explanation of how their algorithms work, and give reasonable prior notification of changes

– Ensure that contractual terms concerning the ability of publishers to monetise content are ‘objectively justifiable’

– Allow publishers to exercise additional control over how their content is shown on platforms

– Facilitate the sharing of platforms’ data concerning user interactions with publishers’ content

How will this impact digital advertising?

A major impact of the DMU will be a rebalancing of the digital advertising market. The Code of Conduct could require platforms to not apply discriminatory terms, conditions, or policies to certain customers. It could also require platforms to not influence competitive processes or outcomes in a way that unduly self-preferences a platform’s own services.

What are the next steps?

The DMU needs legislation to get the powers necessary to rebalance the relationship between platforms and publishers, and the Government will soon respond to the most recent consultation on the new regime (which the PPA responded to on behalf of our members). Once the DMU is given its powers, we can concentrate on ensuring the Codes of Conduct will benefit publishers.

What is the PPA doing?

The PPA has a dedicated Public Affairs Executive, and we also work closely with a team of expert consultants whose role is to engage with Government on behalf of PPA members. We are continuing to speak with Government, senior Digital Markets Unit officials, and senior parliamentarians to ensure that digital competition legislation is treated as a priority.

If you would like to learn more PPA’s work on the Digital Markets Unit, please email our Public Affairs Executive sebastian.cuttill@ppa.co.uk