Dutch Watchdog Launches Probes Against Tech Giants over EU Competition Rules
EU's Digital Markets Enforcement Authority in Netherlands initiates investigations under newly implemented Digital Markets Act.
The Dutch Consumer and Markets Authority (ACM), responsible for checking businesses' compliance with the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), has initiated two investigations to examine "major global tech companies" in light of the EU's market rules. ACM simultaneously collaborates with the European Commission for these investigations.
The 2025 action plan, published this week, reveals that the European Commission can utilize these investigations to instigate changes in tech companies' behavior and impose fines.
The ACM refrains from disclosing any details regarding the companies and the timeline for these investigations.
Commencing March 10th, the ACM holds authority over DMA compliance within the Netherlands.
A Commission representative confirmed to our platform that national agencies may probe DMA-related cases, although they are prohibited from executing any enforcement decisions. Instead, they must submit their findings to the Commission, which retains complete discretion to decide the appropriate course of action.
In May 2023, the DMA entered into effect, and by September that year, the EU executive identified six gatekeepers—Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, ByteDance, Meta, Microsoft - with Booking.com joining the list in 2024.
As of April 23rd, the Commission levied fines of €500 million and €200 million against Apple and Meta, respectively, for flouting the new EU guidelines. The Commission determined that Apple was limiting developers' capacity to guide consumers away from its ecosystem and direct them to alternative channels, whereas Meta's "pays or consent" advertising model imposed a binary consent option on users, forcing them to share personal data for targeted advertising unless they subscribed.
The ACM also functions as the Netherlands' enforcer of the Digital Services Act (DSA), slated to safeguard consumers from illegal online content.
In a December interview, Martijn Snoep, the ACM's head, indicated several priority areas for DSA enforcement action and hinted at forthcoming investigations within the hosting providers domain.
- Digital Markets Act
- EU Policy
- Netherlands
[1] Reference: Current investigations underway by ACM and the role of the European Commission[2] Reference: Agencies' limitations in enforcing DMA compliance[3] Reference: Preliminary non-compliance findings issued against Alphabet
- The Dutch Consumer and Markets Authority (ACM) is currently probing major global tech companies for potential non-compliance with the EU's Digital Markets Act (DMA), with the European Commission providing support for these investigations.
- As National agencies, the Dutch Consumer and Markets Authority (ACM) lacks the power to enforce DMA compliance directly, instead submitting findings to the Commission for decisions on appropriate action.
