Mandating interoperability of interpersonal communications services in an ecosystems competition context

Abstract

With the adoption of Article 7 of the Digital Markets Act, the EU has taken a progressive approach to mandating horizontal interoperability of number-independent interpersonal communications services. This legislative measure addresses the structural competition challenge posed by direct network effects, which tend to lock users into established messaging platforms. However, it is not entirely clear how, if at all, the Commission should implement this interoperability mandate. To shed light on this matter, we present an ecosystems competition context where these messaging services transition into digital ecosystems to create value from user-generated data and attention. Within this context, we find interoperability mandates like Article 7 a plausible solution to the structural competition problem, although much is yet to be done to sharpen these mandates against the intricate inter-ecosystem dynamics and to empower multi-homing users in a post-interoperability world. Achieving this goal requires collaborative efforts not only from sector regulators responsible for overseeing these mandates but also from antitrust and data protection authorities.