Competition watchdog tells Viagogo and Stubhub to pause merger February 10, 2020 The UK’s competition watchdog has told ticket resale websites Viagogo and Ebay’s Stubhub to pause any integration of the two businesses while it probes their $4.1bn (£3.2bn) merger. In an enforcement order published today, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) banned the two firms from taking any action which might “lead to the integration of [...]
How better competition policy can restore public trust in capitalism March 6, 2020 Competition policy is not something most people spend much time thinking about. It’s a dry, legalistic area of policy that even elected officials themselves have largely preferred to delegate to technocratic regulators. Yet competition policy is an integral part of the lifeblood of capitalism. At a time when trust in the market economy is under [...]
Competition watchdog risks ‘killing’ British tech firms, startups warn March 3, 2020 The UK competition watchdog risks “killing” rising British tech companies by launching lengthy investigations while global rivals are free to pull ahead, startups have warned. In a letter to chancellor Rishi Sunak, seen by City A.M., industry body the Coalition for a Digital Economy (Coadec) said the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) “eleventh-hour interventions” risked [...]
Startups clash with watchdog over digital merger regulation March 3, 2020 British startups have been plunged into a bitter war of words with the competition watchdog as the two sides clash over how major tech mergers should be regulated. Industry body the Coalition for a Digital Economy (Coadec) has penned a scathing letter to chancellor Rishi Sunak warning that the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) risked [...]
Britain must harness the online innovation of Covid crisis and embrace a digital world February 25, 2021 The UK has a defining opportunity to create the blueprint for future success and position itself at the forefront of innovation and economic growth. Over the last 12 months, people across the UK have turned to digital to keep connected with loved ones and hundreds of thousands of businesses have experimented for the first time [...]
Shares in Future hit record high after rise in online traffic boosts profit September 7, 2020 Shares in Future hit a record high this morning after the publisher said it was on track to post full-year profit ahead of market expectations. The media group, which owns titles including Four Four Two, Country Life and Tech Radar, said adjusted operating profit would beat current forecasts of between £78.2m and £83.2m, marking a [...]
Coronavirus: Tesco rations essential food and household items March 8, 2020 Tesco has begun rationing essential food and household items as shoppers stockpile amid the coronavirus outbreak. Customers are limited to buying no more than five of each of the rationed goods, including antibacterial gels, wipes and sprays, dried pasta and UHT milk. The rules apply both in store and online. Waitrose has also reportedly introduced [...]
Water industry hits back at Ofwat over price determinations February 14, 2020 Two more water companies have referred Ofwat to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) today over its five-year financial plan for the sector, after Yorkshire Water did so on Monday. Both Anglian and Northumbrian Water have referred the regulator’s price determinations, with the latter claiming that the plan runs “contrary to the long term best [...]
Long awaited audit reforms could start this year, says audit watchdog boss March 5, 2020 The long-promised reform of the UK audit sector could start this year with voluntary changes by the Big Four accounting firms, the audit watchdog said today. The collapse of outsourcer Carillion in 2018 prompted three reviews of the sector and two years on there have been calls from MPs and industry figures to speed up [...]
Competition watchdog revokes ban on Takeway.com and Just Eat integration April 16, 2020 Just Eat Takeway has been given the go-ahead to integrate the two food delivery businesses after the UK’s competition watchdog revoked an order to keep the firms separate. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued an initial enforcement order in January, which prevented the two food delivery firms from integrating their businesses. Amsterdam-based Takeaway.com bought [...]