The Competition and Markets Authority have suggested that Google and Facebook, have too much market power in the market for digital advertising.

The numbers are staggering: Google controls 90% of the UK search advertising market, worth over £7bn and Facebook around half of the display advertising market.

According to the CMA "UK expenditure on digital advertising was around £14bn in 2019, equivalent to about £500 per household. About 80% of this is earned by just 2 companies: Google and Facebook."

Read the press release from the CMA here

This raises concerns about their ability to push up prices for consumers and act as a barrier to entry for competitors.

As a result, the regulatory authority is calling for the creation of a Digital Markets Authority to police this area of the market - possibly about 10 years too late - but better late than never. Add in the political complication of negotiating a new trade deal with the US, and the whole issue becomes a lot more complex.