ACCC Digital Platforms Inquiry - Final Report

The ACCC’s Digital Platforms Inquiry – Final Report was delivered on 26 July 2019.  The Report identified the overlap between data protection, competition and consumer protection and made 23 recommendations for reform.  A number of recommendations related to the enhancement of privacy law through the introduction of a statutory tort for serious invasions of privacy (as previously recommended by the Australian Law Reform Commission) and the ability to request Australian Privacy Principle (APP) entities to erase personal information.  The ACCC also recommended the expansion of the APPs to businesses with an annual turnover of < $3 million (currently subject to the small business exemption).

In accordance with its Terms of Reference, further recommendations related specifically to “digital platforms” (namely, online search engines, social media and digital content aggregators, principally Facebook and Google) and their implications for media content creators, advertisers and consumers, focussing,  in particular, on the impact on news and journalism.  The Australian Government intends to respond to the Report by the end of 2019 following a 3 month consultation process.