Competition and Regulation in Digital Markets

A one-day international conference to discuss current and trending issues on competition and regulation in online and digital markets.

The conference will be organized by the Centre for Business Law and Practice at the School of Law and will bring together in a series of panels academics, industry representatives and government officials from multiple jurisdictions. The event aims to provide an informative and thought-provoking insight into the most significant challenges for competition and regulation in online and digital markets. It will do this by identifying and analysing new patterns and norms in relation to: market definition and market power; the interface of regulation and competition; vertical restraints; and goods and data in online markets.

The conference will comprise a keynote speech by Dr Andrea Coscelli, Acting Chief Executive, Competition and Markets Authority, and four panels on:

• Market Definition and Market Power in Digital Markets
• Regulation vs. Competition in Digital Markets
• Vertical Restraints in Technology-Driven Markets
• Goods and Data in Online Markets

The conference is generously sponsored by Addleshaw Goddard LLP, Eversheds LLP, and Google.

The University of Leeds School of Law is accredited by the Bar Standards Board to provide CPD for barristers at the Bar of England & Wales. This seminar is accredited with 7 CPD hours for barristers at the Bar of England & Wales. We are willing to confirm the attendance of solicitors for CPD purposes on their individual CPD records.

09.30-09.40: Welcome from the Head of School, Professor Alastair Mullis

09.40-10.20: Keynote Speech: Dr Andrea Coscelli (Acting Chief Executive, Competition and Markets Authority)

10.20-11.50: Panel 1: Market Definition and Market Power in Digital Markets

Moderator: Professor Joan Loughrey (School of Law, University of Leeds)

• Professor Pinar Akman (School of Law, University of Leeds): Market definition in online markets: Mission Impossible?
• Andrew Byrne (Head of Public Policy for the UK & Ireland, Uber)
• Geoffrey A. Manne (Executive Director, International Centre for Law and Economics): Competition policy’s ‘nostalgia’ problem: Market definition in the face of innovation and innovation in the face of static market definition
• Dr Florence Thépot (Lecturer, School of Law, University of Glasgow): The input of multi-sided markets economics for the assessment of market power in digital markets

11.50-12.45: Lunch

12.45-14.15: Panel 2: Regulation vs. Competition in Digital Markets

Moderator: Dr Peter Whelan (Associate Professor, School of Law, University of Leeds)

• Professor Damien Geradin (School of Law, Tilburg University): Uber, competition, and regulation
• Dr Konstantinos Stylianou (Lecturer, School of Law, University of Leeds): Regulation and antitrust policy in the face of hypercompetition 
• James Waterworth (Vice President for Europe, Computer & Communications Industry Association): The shape shifting duck: The challenges of regulating dynamic online markets 

14.15-14.30: Coffee

14.30-16.00: Panel 3: Goods and Data in Online Markets

Moderator: Professor Rita de la Feria (School of Law, University of Leeds)

• Professor Michal Gal (Faculty of Law, University of Haifa): Algorithmic consumers
• Bruce Kilpatrick (Partner, Addleshaw Goddard LLP):  The UK perspective: Can online data also be part of the solution?
• Alfonso Lamadrid de Pablo (Principal Associate, Garrigues LLP): Big data: Do competition authorities know how to do it?
• Dr Nicolo Zingales (Lecturer, School of Law, University of Sussex): Data markets and privacy harms

16.00-16.20: Coffee

16.20-17.50: Panel 4: Vertical Restraints in the Online World

Moderator: Dr Sarah Brown (Associate Professor, School of Law, University of Leeds)

• Dr Avantika Chowdhury (Senior Consultant, Oxera): Vertical restraints: New evidence on the short and long-term impact
• Adam Collinson (Partner, Eversheds LLP): Selective distribution: A cloak of respectability to disguise attempts to limit online price competition?
• Professor Kai-Uwe Kühn (Centre for Competition Policy, University of East Anglia)
• Professor Giorgio Monti (European University Institute): Shaping vertical restraints in digital markets

 17.50-18.00: Final Comments: Professor Pinar Akman (School of Law, University of Leeds)

• Professor Pinar Akman (School of Law, University of Leeds) 
• Andrew Byrne (Head of Public Policy for the UK & Ireland, Uber) 
• Dr Avantika Chowdhury (Senior Consultant, Oxera) 
• Adam Collinson (Partner, Eversheds LLP) 
• Dr Andrea Coscelli (Acting Chief Executive, Competition and Markets Authority) 
• Professor Michal Gal (Faculty of Law, University of Haifa) 
• Professor Damien Geradin (School of Law, Tilburg University) 
• Bruce Kilpatrick (Partner, Addleshaw Goddard LLP) 
• Professor Kai-Uwe Kühn (Centre for Competition Policy, University of East Anglia)  
• Alfonso Lamadrid de Pablo (Principal Associate, Garrigues) 
• Geoffrey A. Manne (Executive Director, International Centre for Law and Economics) 
• Professor Giorgio Monti (European University Institute) 
• Dr Konstantinos Stylianou (Lecturer, School of Law, University of Leeds) 
• Dr Florence Thépot (Lecturer, School of Law, University of Glasgow) 
• James Waterworth (Vice President for Europe, Computer & Communications Industry Association) 
• Dr Nicolo Zingales (Lecturer, School of Law, University of Sussex)

Please find below the PDFs of the presentations:

Panel 1: Market Definition and Market Power in Digital Markets

• Market definition in online markets: Mission impossible? - Professor Pinar Akman
• Regulation in taxi and private hire - Andrew Byrne
• Market power in digital markets - The input of multi-sided platforms economics - Dr Florence Thepot

Panel 2: Regulation vs. Competition in Digital Markets

• Uber, competition and regulation - Professor Damien Geradin
• Regulation and antitrust policy in the face of hypercompetition - Dr Konstantinos Stylianou
• The shapeshifting duck - The challenges of regulating dynamic online markets - James Waterworth

Panel 3: Goods and Data in Online Markets

• Algorithmic consumers - Professor Michal Gal
• The UK perspective - Can online data also be part of the solution - Bruce Kilpatrick
• Big data: Do competition authorities know how to do it?- Alfonso Lamadrid de Pablo
• Data markets and privacy harms - Dr Nicolo Zingales

Panel 4: Vertical Restraints in the Online World

• Vertical restraints - New evidence on the short and long-term impact Dr Avantika Chowdhury
• A cloak of respectability to disguise attempts to limit online price competition - Adam Collinson
• Vertical restraints and e-Commerce - Professor Kai-Uwe Kuhn
• Shaping vertical restraints in digital markets - Professor Giorgio Monti

Eversheds, LLP was one of the joint sponsors of this conference. For more information about their work on competition, click here.