TIGA, the trade association representing the UK video games industry, said today that the UK Government should adopt a more robust approach to foster healthy competition in the UK. TIGA made the comments following the publication of John Penrose MP’s proposals to update the UK’s competition and consumer regime. John Penrose’s report, Power to the People, follows his September 2020 invitation to conduct an independent review of UK competition policy. John Penrose’s proposals include the following:
- the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) should publish an annual ‘State of Competition and Consumer Detriment’ report which measures and analyses progress and problems across all sectors of the economy, and all parts of the country;
- measures to protect consumers from new kinds of rip-offs; and
- a pro-competition regime for platforms including those funded by digital advertising, such as Google and Facebook.
Dr Richard Wilson OBE, TIGA CEO, said:
“John Penrose’s report confirms that the UK’s competition regime is good, but not best in class. International rankings put us behind USA, France, Germany, EU and Australia. For example, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) opens fewer enforcement cases than its opposite numbers in France and Germany. Previous research has concluded that a ‘sizeable proportion’ of the UK’s markets are ‘dominated by a small number of large incumbents’[1] and that there has been a lack of scrutiny of mergers in the digital economy. [2]
“Effective competitive markets typically promote choice, innovation, job creation, lower prices, and better services. Concentrated and uncompetitive markets damage business, consumers, and the wider economy because companies face less pressure to reduce prices, to invest and innovate, and to improve customer service.
“The UK Government and regulators should adopt a more robust policy approach to foster healthy competition in the UK. The CMA should be properly resourced so that it can enforce competitive markets.”
[1] Social Market Foundation, Concentration, Not Competition, October 2017, link
[2] HM Treasury, Unlocking digital competition, Report of the Digital Competition Expert Panel, March 2019, link