Overview of the Act
- The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act ("the Act") creates a new regime to increase competition in digital markets by conferring powers and duties on the Competition and Markets Authority ("CMA") to regulate competition in these markets; updates powers to investigate and enforce competition law; updates and enhances powers to investigate and enforce consumer protection law and resolve consumer disputes; and gives consumers protections in respect of unfair commercial practices, subscription traps and prepayments to savings schemes.
- The Act is in six Parts and has 30 Schedules. The general arrangement of the Act is as follows:
Part Summary Part 1 - Digital Markets, including Schedules 1-2 ● Provides for the designation of undertakings as having strategic market status in respect of a digital activity.
● Gives the CMA powers to impose conduct requirements on a designated undertaking and to take steps to promote competition through pro-competition interventions where it finds an adverse effect on competition in respect of a designated activity.
● Introduces a duty to report possible mergers involving a designated undertaking or its corporate group.
● Introduces a series of investigatory powers and requirements to produce compliance reports in respect of a designated activity.
● Provides for enforcement, appeals and administrative matters relating to the CMA’s powers and duties under the digital markets regime.
Part 2 - Competition, including Schedules 3-14 ● Amends powers to investigate and enforce against (suspected) infringements of the Competition Act 1998 Chapter I and II prohibitions.
● Makes changes to the Enterprise Act 2002 merger jurisdictional thresholds, as well as providing for some procedural changes to merger reviews.
● Makes changes to the Enterprise Act 2002 to introduce a new regime to prevent foreign state control or influence over newspapers and periodic news magazines.
● Makes changes to the procedures for market studies and investigations under the Enterprise Act 2002, including provision for a new power to conduct trials of certain remedies to determine their final format.
● Amends the CMA’s power to require the production of information held electronically and accessible from a premises when acting under a warrant during an investigation under section 192 of the Enterprise Act 2002.
● Sets out miscellaneous provisions, including with regards to civil penalties and the extra-territorial reach of information notices in connection with competition matters.
Part 3 - Enforcement of Consumer Protection Law, including Schedules 15-19 ● Sets out the infringements that are in scope of the enforcement regimes provided by Part 3.
● Replaces, simplifies and enhances the civil, court based enforcement regime for consumer protection law currently set out in Part 8 of the Enterprise Act 2002. This Part gives the courts powers to make consumer protection orders or for undertakings to be accepted as an alternative to these orders. It also gives the courts new powers to impose monetary penalties.
● Gives the CMA new powers in respect of infringements of certain consumer protection laws, breach of undertakings and non-compliance with CMA directions, including powers to impose monetary penalties.
● Amends Schedule 5 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015 to enhance the enforceability of statutory information notices given to a person under paragraph 14 of Schedule 5 and to clarify enforcers’ ability, during onsite inspections, to access material which is held remotely.
Part 4 - Consumer Rights and Disputes, including Schedules 20-27 ● Prohibits unfair commercial practices, replacing and updating the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008, subject to transitional provisions.
● Prohibits the ‘drip pricing’ of unavoidable fees by requiring traders to set out in an invitation to purchase the total price of a product including any mandatory fees, taxes and charges that apply to the purchase of a product.
● Adds a banned practice relating to fake consumer reviews to the Schedule 20 list of commercial practices which are in all circumstances considered unfair. Imposes duties on traders in relation to subscription contracts, provides rights for consumers if those duties are breached and provides rights for consumers to cancel subscription contracts during cooling-off periods.
● Gives protections to consumers in respect of payments to consumer saving scheme contracts.
● Prohibits alternative dispute resolution procedures for consumer contracts where the provider is not accredited nor exempt and makes provision for accreditation and exemption, related requirements and enforcement.
Part 5 - Miscellaneous, including Schedules 28-29 ● Sets out miscellaneous provisions, including in respect of the provision of investigative assistance to overseas regulators; disclosing information overseas; and a duty of expedition on the CMA and sectoral regulators.
● Provide the CMA with new information gathering powers for it to obtain specified information from undertakings involved in or connected with the distribution, supply or retail of motor fuel.
Part 6 – General, including Schedule 30 ● Sets out general provisions, including interpretation; financial provision; power to make consequential provision; regulations; extent; commencement; and short title.
