HKU Competition Law Lecture Series:
Regulation of the Digital Markets in Japan

30 January 2026 (Friday), 6:30 – 7:30 PM Hong Kong Time
Room 824, Cheng Yu Tung Tower, The University of Hong Kong

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This lecture explores the evolving landscape of competition law and policy in Japan, with a focus on recent developments that highlight both the strengths and limitations of the current legal framework. Central to the discussion is the recent Antimonopoly Act (AMA) violation case involving Google’s Android, which raises critical questions about platform dominance, market power, and significance of default setting. Complementing this case study is an examination of the newly enacted Smartphone Act, designed to reinforce and supplement the AMA by addressing structural issues in digital markets and ensuring fairer competition among app stores and mobile service providers. Beyond these specific legal measures, the lecture will consider broader themes: what competition law in Japan can realistically achieve in regulating complex, fast-moving digital markets, and where its boundaries lie.

About the Speaker:

Masako Wakui is a professor at the Graduate School of Law, Kyoto University since April 2019, and has been a visiting scholar at Newcastle University, UK, since September 2021. She has previously taught at Osaka City University and Rikkyo University in Japan. Her fields are competition law and policy, and she has published books and articles on these subjects. She has served as a chief researcher (2016-18) and visiting researcher (2018-present) for the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) Competition Policy Research Centre (CPRC), as a member of the Monitoring Meeting of Improving Transparency and Fairness of Digital Platforms, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (2023-present), and various other advisory and study groups at the JFTC and other administrative bodies. Prof. Wakui is also a board member of the Japan Association of Economic Law and the co-head of the Asian Chapter of the Academic Society for Competition Law (ASCOLA).

More information about the AIIFL, please visit Asian Institute of International Financial Law (AIIFL).