
Competition
Particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, small businesses increasingly rely on large technology platforms’ free and low-cost tools and services to support basic operations, including advertising and marketing at home and accessing new markets. If Europe’s “modern” digital framework restricts platforms’ scale, or ability to offer new and innovative services, small businesses will inevitably pay more for digital services or perhaps lose some services altogether. Competition oversight is important, but government must take a broad view of the entire economy in order to avoid unintended consequences that could devastate small businesses.