The Bank of Korea: "US to Further Strengthen Big Tech Antitrust Regulations... Impact on Domestic Industries"

Bank of Korea 'Overseas Economic Focus'

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Eun-byeol] The Bank of Korea has forecast that the U.S. government's antitrust regulations on big tech will be further strengthened. If such regulations expand across the industry, it is expected that they will affect not only the U.S. but also the market dominance and regulation of platform companies in South Korea.

On the 21st, the Bank of Korea stated in its 'Overseas Economic Focus' that the U.S. House of Representatives recently investigated the monopoly situations of four big tech companies?Google, Facebook, Apple, and Amazon?and evaluated that these companies have undermined entrepreneurship through unfair practices and infringed on consumer rights, freedom of the press, and privacy. Based on the House's investigation and their own inquiries, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) jointly filed antitrust lawsuits against Google and Facebook last year in cooperation with state and local prosecutors.

The Bank of Korea said, "Antitrust regulatory measures require a long time for legislation and litigation, and there are considerable opposing opinions against big tech antitrust regulations, so there is significant uncertainty in the lawsuit outcomes," adding, "If the enforcement power of U.S. antitrust authorities is strengthened, the scope and intensity of regulations will expand and deepen across the industry." In fact, the U.S. Department of Justice and FTC continue investigations into Amazon and Apple while preparing for prolonged antitrust lawsuits against Google and Facebook.

The Bank of Korea expects that with the inauguration of the Biden administration and the Democratic Party's control of both the House and Senate, legislation related to antitrust regulations will become more active. This is because the Democratic Party prioritizes protecting the interests of various stakeholders from monopolistic practices by large corporations.

The Bank of Korea also anticipates that if this situation prolongs, it will influence discussions on evaluating the market dominance of domestic platform operators and regulatory frameworks. In fact, the Korea Fair Trade Commission emphasizes that major competition policy authorities in countries such as the U.S. are actively responding to platform issues and plans to establish guidelines for reviewing the conduct of monopolistic operators in the platform sector. Furthermore, the Bank of Korea stressed, "the strengthening of U.S. antitrust regulations could have direct and indirect effects on Korean companies, so it is necessary to pay close attention to the U.S. government's and Congress's moves to reinforce antitrust regulations."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.