In this seminar Professor Ioannis Lianos addresses digital ecosystems by examining the evolving law and political economy for the economy of the digital industry. He begins by establishing the foundational elements of ecosystem theory and exploring various conceptual frameworks for understanding these complex structures.
Ioannis Lianos is Professor of Global Competition Law and Public Policy at University College London, Faculty of Laws, where he has been teaching since 2005. He is ordinary member of the UK Competition Appeal Tribunal. He was President of the Hellenic Competition Commission from August 2019 to December 2023. Ioannis was elected a member of the Bureau of the OECD Competition Committee in 2021 and re-elected in 2022 and 2023.
Ecosystem theory has emerged as a prominent analytical framework for understanding public and private governance in the digital economy, yet the concept remains conceptually fragmented and lacks definitional clarity. Initially introduced in strategic management literature as an inconsistent metaphor, "ecosystem" lacked both theoretical coherence and concrete legal applications.
This seminar addresses this theoretical gap by examining the evolving law and political economy of business ecosystems, with particular emphasis on digital ecosystems. We begin by establishing the foundational elements of ecosystem theory and exploring various conceptual frameworks for understanding these complex structures.
The analysis then shifts to power dynamics within and between ecosystems, examining the underlying economics alongside the operational tools and metrics developed for ecosystem analysis. Through comparative case study analysis, we investigate how recent legal decisions have operationalized the ecosystem concept and assess whether their competitive analysis differs substantively from traditional analytical frameworks.
Our examination encompasses merger control and antitrust cases from both EU and Brazilian jurisdictions, evaluating how courts and competition authorities have grappled with ecosystem-based theories of harm while integrating ecosystem efficiency considerations into their assessments.
The final section examines digital health and "shared innovation" ecosystems in human healthcare, providing concrete analysis of how competition law and digital regulatory frameworks apply in this sector. We will explore the complex interplay between competition policy and intellectual property rights, while identifying pathways for fostering more competitive and innovative digital health markets.
The Seminar is free of charge and will take place at Stockholms Centre of Commercial Law (SCCL), Stockholm University, Friscati campus.
Introductory article(s) that will be provided upon registration:
Ecosystems and competition law in theory and practice | Industrial and Corporate Change | Oxford Academic by Michael G Jacobides and Ioannis Lianos
Coat of Many Colours—New Concepts and Metrics of Economic Power in Competition Law and Economics | Journal of Competition Law & Economics | Oxford Academic by Ioannis Lianos and Bruno Carballa-Smichowski
Access to Health Data, Competition, and Regulatory Alternatives: Three Dimensions of Fairness | Journal of Competition Law & Economics | Oxford Academic by Ioannis Lianos
Towards a Legal Theory of Digital Ecosystems by Ioannis Lianos, Klaas Hendrik Eller and Tobias Kleinschmitt