Australia: Opened consultation on ACCC’s regulatory reform recommendations

On 20 December 2022, the Department of the Treasury opened a public consultation on the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) policy recommendations concerning digital platforms until 15 February 2023. The ACCC made the recommendations in its fifth report from the Digital platform services inquiry. The Treasury Department aims to gather additional information from stakeholders on possible legal reforms and the recommendations issued by ACCC. In particular, the ACCC, in its fifth report published on 11 November 2022, outlined several proposals to address the competition and consumer issues identified during the inquiry on digital platforms. In particular, the report recommends adopting regulations prohibiting unfair trading practices and contract terms, mandating platforms to implement internal and external dispute resolution mechanisms and flagging systems to prevent and remove scams, harmful apps, and fake reviews. Furthermore, the ACCC proposed designating digital platforms that should follow mandatory codes and prohibiting digital platforms from self-preferencing their products.