Future mergers will be assessed on datasets as well as market share, says Singapore competition regulator

It is "only a matter of time" before CCS will "have to decide on a merger application predicated not on market share, but the datasets of a merged entity" Kam told a competition law conference.

Data analytics will play a big part in Singapore’s next stage of growth and development, he said, and regulators must consider how to ensure that competition policy and principles "continue to be relevant and applicable".

A CCS-commissioned study into the use of data and data analytics has shown that while large data sets and data analytics may be new, Singapore's existing analytical frameworks are sufficiently flexible and robust to deal with the competition issues that may arise in data driven industries, the CCS said.

"CCS will stay vigilant to new developments and ensure it has the necessary tools to detect and deter any possible harm to competition in markets in Singapore that emerges from the use of technologies," it said.

PDPC and CCS will now begin a joint study of the consumer protection and competition related issues of data portability alongside a PDPC study of the benefits and risks in the increased use of algorithms in profiling and automated decision making in Singapore, it said.

"As data is closely linked with issues of privacy and intellectual property protection, CCS also worked with the Intellectual Property Office of Singapore (IPOS) and the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC) to address the implications of data protection and intellectual property laws on competition in these industries," minister for trade and industry Lim Hng Kiang told the conference.