China on Sunday launched new antitrust protocols to counter the country’s technology giants, Reuters reports. The guidelines, which finalize the draft law originally launched in November, are intended to “stop monopolistic behavior in the platform economy and protect fair market competition,” according to the Chinese State Administration for Market Regulation.
These rules would prohibit top technology giants in China, such as Alibaba Group and Tencent Holdings, from engaging in a series of long-term market practices. Some of these include forcing merchants to choose between the country’s largest internet providers, inhibiting technological innovation, manipulating the market using data and algorithms, and setting prices, according to Reuters.
Such practices have long remained uncontrolled, given the government’s practical approach to the business side of the Internet, but have been subject to increased scrutiny in recent months. Chinese regulators have also launched an antitrust probe into the Alibaba Group in December on the alleged anti-competitive practices of the e-commerce giant.
However, so far it has been a bit of an uphill battle. In a Q&A launched alongside its new protocols, China’s market regulator said it was struggling to impose comprehensive regulations and reforms.
“Behavior is more hidden, the use of data, algorithms, platform rules and so on make it more difficult to discover and determine what monopoly agreements are,” he told Reuters.
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But these guidelines for sure seem like a promising first step to address problem.
[Reuters]