EU may extend DMA to smart TVs
EU regulators are considering applying the Digital Markets Act beyond app stores to smart TVs and virtual assistants, signaling increased scrutiny of Big Tech platform control across device categories. That regulatory expansion is being pitched as a material compliance and product‑planning consideration for platform teams. (globalbankingandfinance.com)
A coalition led by the Association of Commercial Television and Video on Demand Services in Europe (ACT) sent a letter dated 23 March 2026 to EU antitrust chief Teresa Ribera, explicitly asking the Commission to consider connected TV operating systems and virtual assistants for gatekeeper designation and listing member broadcasters such as Canal+, RTL, ITV, Paramount+, NBCUniversal and Walt Disney. (telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com) Broadcasters cited a 2025 market study showing Android TV’s share rising from 16% to 23% between 2019 and 2024, Amazon Fire OS growing from 5% to 12% in the same period, and Samsung’s Tizen holding roughly 24% market share, using those figures to argue the platforms’ increasing reach. (telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com) The European Commission is legally obliged to deliver its first formal review report of the Digital Markets Act by 3 May 2026 after stakeholder consultations that closed in September 2025, and the Commission published a summary of responses on 8 January 2026 to inform that review. (digital-markets-act.ec.europa.eu) Article 3’s quantitative thresholds that trigger a rebuttable presumption of gatekeeper status include an EU turnover of at least €7.5 billion in each of the last three financial years or an average market capitalisation of at least €75 billion, plus criteria such as 45 million monthly active end users in the EU and 10,000 yearly active business users; once designated, gatekeepers must meet DMA obligations within six months. (eu-digital-markets-act.com) Obligations that would materially affect smart‑TV platform roadmaps include requirements to allow third‑party app stores and payment systems, enable interoperability and uninstallation of preinstalled software, prohibit self‑preferencing in rankings, and restrict cross‑use of end‑user data without consent. (hsfkramer.com) Implementation planning that maps to the DMA review timetable should therefore track three quantitative triggers—EU MAU, EU turnover (Article 3 thresholds), and any formal notification windows already used in past designations—and align workstreams to a six‑month compliance horizon from potential designation. (eu-digital-markets-act.com) To date the Commission has not designated any virtual assistants as gatekeepers, and the broadcasters’ letter singled out named assistants including Amazon’s Alexa and Apple’s Siri while noting entrants such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT Tasks feature as part of the competitive dynamics the Commission will consider. (telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com)
