Watchdog: Brexit will help tech crackdown

BRITAIN’S markets watchdog has revealed it could launch more investigations into tech giants after Brexit.

The Competition and Markets Authority’s chairman said the regulator expects to be able to take more aggressive action against Facebook, Google and Amazon because it will no longer need to rely on the European Commission looking after British consumers.

Jonathan Scott, the CMA’s interim chairman, also warned that the organisation could change its rules to stop internet giants launching constant legal challenges to its actions.

He said: ‘While the CMA was a member of the European Union, many digital competition enforcement cases were undertaken on our behalf by the Commission, but from January we will be able to start investigating the conduct that most affects UK consumers.

‘What is clear is that the digital majors are emerging stronger from this crisis.

‘I think it will be a source of real concern to all of us coming out from Covid-19 if we don’t see a large number of growing internet companies who are using the change that Covid has driven in our behaviours to do more things online.’

The CMA currently faces legal action from Facebook over its probe of the social media giant’s $400million (£350million) takeover of Giphy.

The watchdog has blocked Facebook from integrating with Giphy until its investigation is over. But Facebook argues the CMA has restricted some activities that are not related to the takeover.

Scott said legal disputes of this kind ‘frustrate’ the CMA’s work.