An overview of the extent of the powers of South African competition authorities in the regulation of price discrimination under the Competition Act 89 of 1998 in the context of digital transformation
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Date
Authors
Magau, Phemelo
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
North-West University
Abstract
The purpose of the Competition Act 89 of 1998 as amended (the
Competition Act) is, among others, to promote the efficiency,
adaptability and development of the economy as well as to
provide consumers with competitive prices and product choices.
In line with this purpose, the Competition Act provides that a
dominant firm is prohibited from engaging in price discrimination
if such conduct will likely substantially prevent or lessen
competition, which would be to the detriment of consumers.
Notably, the Competition Act has established various bodies to
regulate competition and act against any conduct prohibited by
this Act in South Africa. These bodies include the Competition
Commission, the Competition Tribunal, and the Competition
Appeal Court. Notwithstanding the prohibition of price
discrimination, the Competition Act does not expressly provide
adequate enforcement tools for competition authorities to
combat uncompetitive practices in the digital era. Moreover, the
Competition Act does not expressly grant these statutory bodies
clear roles and mandates on providing consumers with adequate
and suitable redress when they have been victims of algorithmic
price discrimination. With recent technological developments,
electronic commerce (e-commerce), and digital transformation,
consumers have become vulnerable to various challenges such
as excessive pricing, data breaches and algorithmic pricing. The
online and digital markets are characterised by complex
transactions, innovative technologies and business practices
which expose all consumers, including vulnerable consumers, to
different risks. As such, the role of the competition authorities
needs to be recalibrated to enhance consumer protection on the
pricing of goods and services. To this end this paper seeks to
investigate the role and ambit of the powers of these competition
authorities in the regulation of price discrimination in the context
of digital transformation and the digital economy. This is done to
assess whether the competition authorities have the necessary
tools of enforcement to ensure that markets are competitive and
to combat uncompetitive conduct in the digital economy and
online markets.
Description
Keywords
Competition authorities, Price discrimination, Algorithmic pricing, Consumer protection, Digital transformation, SDG-08: Decent work and economic growth, SDG-10: Reduced inequalities, Competition Act 89 of 1998
Sustainable Development Goals
SDG-08:Decent work and economic growth
SDG-10:Reduces inequalities
SDG-10:Reduces inequalities
Citation
Magau, P. "An Overview of the
Extent of the Powers of South
African Competition Authorities in
the Regulation of Price
Discrimination under the
Competition Act 89 of 1998 in the
Context of Digital Transformation"
PER / PELJ 2024(27) - DOI
http://dx.doi.org/10.17159/1727-
3781/2024/v27i0a17154.