JSD Forum: Gunn Jiravuttipong, “The Diffusion of Digital Competition Law in Developing Countries”

The Joyful Scholarly Discussion Forum (JSD Forum) is a series of workshops where JSD students present their works-in-progress. We invite all to attend and participate–critiques and comments are what make a project better!

 

On Monday, March 18 (the Forum’s inaugural session!), JSD student Gunn Jiravuttipong will present a draft paper, titled “The Diffusion of Digital Competition Law in Developing Countries.” Visiting Professor Zenichi Shishido and JSD student Nicolas Lezaca will comment on this draft, after which we will open to the audience for additional discussion and remarks. 

 

The session will take place at Room 111, and also virtually on Zoom: https://berkeley.zoom.us/j/92825656724

 

An abstract of Gunn’s draft paper is as follows:

“This paper explores the diffusion of the ex-ante competition regulation inspired by the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA). The DMA imposes obligations on dominant platforms or gatekeepers, representing a shift in competition law. This paper argues that the DMA will likely serve as a template for widespread digital competition reforms in developing countries. Moreover, This paper attempts to provide an overview of the current state of regulatory diffusion and the factors and actors shaping the process, especially in developing countries that have already initiated their legislative process. This trend deserves more scrutiny, as many developing countries are still grappling with putting traditional competition laws into practice but have shifted their legislative attention and enforcement efforts to digital markets.

The paper also proposes a framework for tracing the initial diffusion process from announcement to reform, publication of market investigation or expert reports from competition authorities, proposed draft legislation, and public consultations. The preliminary result highlights trends such as a swift convergence to the DMA model, tradeoffs made in the legislative process, and customization patterns. Furthermore, this paper focuses on a particularly challenging aspect of customization: the gatekeeper designation process. Developing countries have different platform ecosystems from the EU and the US, necessitating significant customization for the law to become operationalized. Through selected case studies, the paper aims to contribute to a better understanding of the nuances and complexity of the actors and factors shaping the new rules in the digital economy.”