ADM+S research informs latest ACCC Digital Platform Services Inquiry
Author ADM+S Centre
Date 5 December 2024
On 4 December 2024, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) released the ninth interim report for its Digital Platform Services Inquiry 2020–25.
The report revisits competition and consumer issues arising in the supply of general search services in Australia. It examines technology, regulatory and industry change since the ACCC last considered general search services in the September 2021 interim report of this Inquiry, including the impact of general search and trends in search quality.
Key findings include the evolution of search engine business models, the integration of AI-driven tools, and ongoing challenges in ensuring competition and consumer protection. While the report makes no new recommendations, it reiterates the critical need for regulatory reforms proposed in earlier reports, including the September 2022 interim report.
The ARC Centre of Excellence for Automated Decision-Making and Society (ADM+S) and School of Computing Technology, RMIT University contributed significant insights to the ACCC’s report through its submission, particularly the Australian Search Experience project, which tracked over 350 million search results from 1,000 volunteers.
Key contributions and citations from the ADM+S submissions
- User Priorities in Search: key consumer demand of a search service is that it responds very quickly to any query issued.
- Personalisation and Targeting: Findings showed minimal personalisation for generic queries, with search engines primarily tailoring results to geographic relevance.
- Construction of search queries: The extent of differences in how users construct search queries, and how those differences impact what results a user is served, is the focus of the next stage of the ADM+S’ Australian Search Experience project.
- Diversity in Results: When evaluating the quality of general search services, diversity of search results is valued by searchers.
- Impact of AI on Search: The integration of generative AI in search services is reshaping advertising models, for instance, where product placements are injected or integrated into conversational chat interfaces.
ADM+S researchers stressed the importance of search engines maintaining transparency and fairness in how they present results, ensuring users can access a broad range of reliable and diverse information sources.
Professor Mark Sanderson, expert in information retrieval, led the submission from ADM+S and the RMIT School of Computing Technologies.
He said, “Search is an important research priority for ADM+S. Evidence points to a growing distrust in society of information pushed out by others and a consequent desire to seek answers proactively.
“We were delighted to collaborate with colleagues at RMIT School of Computing Technologies to contribute to the ACCC’s inquiry.”
The ACCC’s findings and ADM+S contributions serve as a call to action for policymakers, industry leaders, and researchers to work together in shaping a digital ecosystem that is equitable and consumer-focused.
The ADM+S submission was led by Prof Mark Sanderson with contributions from Prof Daniel Angus, Dr Aaron Snoswell, Dr Dana Mckay and Dr Johanne Trippas.
