ACCC Asks For Public Opinion On Broker Data Business Practices To Regulate The Digital Platform Service Sector In Australia

JAKARTA - The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has asked for opinions from consumers, businesses, and other related parties regarding the business practice of broker data in an effort to regulate the digital platform service sector in the country.

ACCC will consider products and services provided by major broker data, including Oracle, Equifax, Ireland-based Expertian, and global technology company LiveRamp, as well as several other data providers to make reports on the sector.

"There is little transparency and awareness of how broker data operates in Australia even though they are gathering very much information about Australian consumers and their central role in enabling exchange of information between businesses," said ACCC chairman Gina Cass-Gottlieb.

In general, broker data collects information such as customer personal details, including their browsing and purchasing behavior, from various sources such as mobile apps, social media sites, and card payment providers.

The report will explore how third-party broker data collects and uses information to create products and services, as well as whether competition and consumers could arise from this, ACCC said in a statement.

The regulator's digital platform branch has conducted an investigation for five years to 2025 to investigate the digital service supply markets.

The report will focus on businesses gathering information from third-party sources and distributing or selling data to other organizations, and if there are competition and consumer problems arising from this. The report will be submitted to the treasurer in March 2024, the ACCC added.