A day or so ago, Apple published a lengthy statement criticizing the European Union"s (EU) Digital Markets Act (DMA), saying that it actually leads to fewer choices for customers, reduces differentiation in vendor services, and promotes unfair competition. It also complained that App Store restrictions are making iOS look more like Android. Now, Google has joined Apple in calling for a "reset" of the DMA.
Google says that while the DMA was designed to create a level playing field, it"s actually having the opposite effect. It is even impacting the European tourism industry because while Google Search could directly link to hotel and airlines booking sites, the DMA mandates it to link to intermediary platforms instead, which results in a poorer experience and raises the price for consumers. This is unfairly benefitting the middle-man website rather than the businesses actually selling their services. It is also opening up customers to malicious cybersecurity threats from third-parties.
Google has lamented that the DMA was designed to boost innovation through interoperability, but it has not been able to achieve this purpose due to unnecessary red tape and untested rules. Just like Apple, Google also claims that it had to delay its new AI features by up to a year just for European customers because there was no clarity if they complied with the DMA. The tech giant emphasized that:
We have proactively made many changes to our products to comply with the DMA, including offering new opportunities like data portability tools for European businesses and developers. But we and other companies still face considerable uncertainty and unpredictability. This is compounded by overlapping rules from national regulators and cases before national courts that are increasingly undermining the DMA’s goal of creating harmonized, consistent rules across the EU.
In terms of immediate next steps, Google has called for a reset of the DMA and urged the European Commission (EC) to ensure that any enforcement of the DMA is consistent, consumer-friendly, and fact-driven.