This week, Dutch Startup Association had a roundtable discussion with the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and various stakeholders. Our head of PA, Rogier Klimbie, discussed the consequences of the Digital Markets Act on the ecosystem, including startups, scaleups, and VC investors. 

Startups have the ambition to scale up and hyper-growth. They are founded with the purpose of offering new services or products that will challenge established market players. The Digital Market Act is the legislation whose objective will be to establish rules for what the European Commission defines as “gatekeeper platforms”. The Digital Market Act has the potential to open more doors to innovation by establishing clear and updated rules for competition within European digital markets. However, these new rules should not dissuade startups from starting or scaling up in the EU in the first place. 

During the roundtable session our head of PA, Rogier Klimbie, stressed the importance of a competitive and innovative ecosystem and expressed his concerns about the DMA, its scope, and its effects. Various stakeholders, including the Ministry, shared these concerns. During the upcoming months, there will be several other sessions to further discuss the scope and effects of this legislation. We will do our best to make sure that the Digital Markets Act only strengthens the position of startups and does not hinder innovation and scaling up. 

To get to know more about our concerns regarding the Digital Markets Act, read the blog from Rogier Klimbie here.