Antitrust probes will ensure healthy development of platform economy: China Daily editorial

While the innovation and development of platform enterprises is encouraged and supported by the government, their monopolistic practices are detrimental to the healthy development of the industry, and the economy as a whole.

Thus, with the Central Economic Work Conference, held from Wednesday to Friday last week, setting eliminating monopolies and checking the disorderly expansion of capital as key tasks, and a number of anti-monopoly policies being introduced prior to the meeting, strengthening the government's anti-monopoly stance, it was clearly only a matter of time before the tech giants came under scrutiny.

So it is no great surprise that the State Administration for Market Regulation launched an anti-monopoly investigation of e-commerce giant Alibaba Group on Thursday, citing its policy of requiring business partners to avoid dealing with its competitors.

The top executives of Alibaba's affiliate Ant Group were also summoned by a group of finance authorities to discuss its "compliance" work. The company, which works as an intermediary for financial services and customers, has pledged to take measures to curb debt risks after the Chinese authorities abruptly called off its initial public offering last month.

The move sends an unmistakable signal that the State has decided not to give a nod and a wink to the radical expansion of the IT companies into different sectors, some of which directly concern national security and people's well-being, and Alibaba is unlikely to be the only giant IT enterprise investigated.

The antitrust probe will undoubtedly prove to be a milestone in the development of the internet industry in China.

Nonetheless, the strengthened antitrust supervision over the IT enterprises should not be over-interpreted as it is by no means intended to strangle these big corporations. Rather, as in many other countries, it is aimed at regulating the development of relevant industries and fostering innovation and competition so as to promote healthy development of the internet platform economy in the long run.

China's stance on boosting the development of the internet economy is consistent. It is hoped that the tightened supervision will ensure the internet platform economy can continue to be a big stage open to all talented minds and dream chasers.

However, if a monopoly is allowed to go unchecked, not only will nascent start-ups be stifled and the distribution of resources distorted, but also national security may be threatened and public interests harmed.

To deal with monopolies and unfair competition is a requirement for improving the socialist market system with Chinese characteristics, and advancing quality development, as fair competition is at the heart of a market economy, and is a prerequisite for effective resource distribution and survival of the fittest businesses.

The investigation into Alibaba, along with possible probes of other IT enterprises in the future, will expedite the maturing of China's anti-monopoly institutional system, and also make the country a front-runner in the governance of the digital economy.