ICOMP

A healthy online marketplace exists when organisations and individuals are able to produce content using transparent and competitive channels. Conditions are optimal when barriers to market entry are few and opportunities to thrive and capitalise upon the various online communities are without limit.

On 6th October 2009 ICOMP launched its document outlining 'Imperatives for a Healthy, Secure and Competitive Internet', which its Chairman, Lord Alan Watson of Richmond, presented to Commissioner Reding at the European Parliament.  To view the Imperatives, click here. 

Competition

Where multiple channels are available, it is important that everyone has an equal chance to participate. In the interest of maintaining a healthy marketplace; any dominant player must ensure that their business practices do not limit their exposure to competition.

They would do this to ensure that advertisers, content providers and consumers are afforded choice and the online economy can continue to flourish.

Transparency

When participants in the online marketplace support and facilitate the adoption of competition and transparency as core business practices; market players have the ability to make informed choices, innovate and maximise their capacity to succeed. 

This guarantees that commerce prospers and as consumers embrace the Web as an integral part of their lives, where their rights are protected.

• ICOMP Transparency White Paper: Openness and the Internet

On 6th October 2009, ICOMP launched the first in a series of White Papers looking at what is imperative for the future of a healthy online marketplace.  This White Paper focuses on transparency challenges in search and online advertising, called 'Openness and the Internet' (to view the report click here). 

Whilst the online advertising industry may at first appear marginal, in fact openness and transparency are imperative to the future health of the Internet as a whole.  Online advertising supports the vast majority of free online services that the public uses today, from news sites to social; networks.  Similarly, search is key in creating a healthy online marketplace as it acts as a gate-way to the Internet.

Healthy Marketplaces News

A selection of articles can be found on our industry news page.




Healthy Marketplaces Events

ICOMP Business Roundtable "Openness and the Internet"

• ICOMP held a business roundtable launching its White Paper "Openness and the Internet" on 6th October 2009, including speeches from Ben Edelman (Assistant Professor at Harvard Business School); Shivaun Raff (co-Founder of leading Vertical Search Engine Foundem); and Brendan Tansey (UK CEO of Wunderman).
• For more information:
  • view the White Paper here
  • read a short summary of the event
  • see Ben Edelman's research: Towards a 'Bill of Rights' for Advertisers and Securing Online Advertising - Rustlers and Sheriffs in the new Wild West

ICOMP Debate “European Election Campaigns in the Internet Age: what lessons from the US?” 

• ICOMP hosted this event on September 17, 2008 in Brussels. You can see a photo gallery of the dinner debate here, and read a post-event summary in our newsletter.

ICOMP Co-Sponsored King's College London Event with Commissioner Maglena Kuneva

• European Commissioner Meglena Kuneva gave her inaugural speech as part of the annual Commissioner's address to the students and faculty at King's.  The event was organised under the auspices of King's LLM in Competition Law, which includes a course on "Competition Law & Network Regulated Industries". 
• ICOMP is a co-sponsor of the LLM course and has offered a prize of €3,000 for the best essay on "How does economics and existing legal precedent on network industries guide us in assessing the existence of market power on the Internet?".