The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act: the shift from regulation to enforcement

The Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act (DMCC) is no longer just legislation sitting in the background. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is now actively using its new powers and for businesses operating online, that makes the impact far more immediate.

While much of the early attention around the Act focused on Big Tech, many of the practical risks sit much closer to everyday commercial activity: pricing journeys, online reviews, influencer endorsements, subscription sign-ups, cancellation processes and wider digital conversion tactics.

The real significance of the Act is not simply the legislation itself, but the CMA’s ability to intervene more quickly and publicly, without first going through the courts. That changes the level of scrutiny around how businesses acquire customers and drive growth online.

Enforcement is starting to take shape

Recent developments have started to show how the regulator intends to enforce the regime in practice. CMA action around drip pricing, fake reviews and online choice architecture has made the legislation feel far more tangible for businesses.

Drip pricing is one area bringing the new regime into sharper focus. The significance of the CMA’s reported action involving AA and BSM is less about the businesses themselves and more about the regulator signalling a willingness to act. Similar issues can arise across subscriptions, events, SaaS onboarding, booking platforms and service bundles, particularly where unavoidable charges appear late in the customer journey.

The £473k fine issued to Euro Car Parks is also a useful reminder that enforcement risk is not limited to breaches of consumer law itself. Failing to engage properly with the regulator or comply with formal information requests can also lead to significant penalties. That makes governance, escalation processes and enforcement readiness increasingly important.

Why media and marketing businesses are exposed

For media and marketing services businesses, compliance is becoming increasingly tied to commercial design. Reviews, testimonials, influencer activity, pricing presentation, upsell prompts and cancellation journeys are no longer simply marketing decisions, they are also consumer law considerations.

Fake reviews are likely to be one of the most relevant areas for many businesses, particularly those operating creator-led, marketplace or platform models. The issue extends beyond completely fabricated testimonials and into areas such as incentivised endorsements, selective moderation and AI-generated content. The focus is increasingly on whether businesses have effective systems and controls in place to identify and deal with misleading practices.

There is also growing scrutiny around online choice architecture, from how offers are framed and defaults are set to how easy it is for customers to cancel or opt out. These are areas many businesses have traditionally viewed through a product or conversion lens, but they are now becoming regulatory considerations as well.

Esther Carder, Partner and Head of Media, commented:
“For media businesses, the DMCC regime is ultimately about trust, transparency and the sustainability of revenue models. If growth depends on subscriptions, digital sales funnels or influencer-led promotion, these issues are now firmly on the commercial agenda.”

Wider implications for digital and consumer-facing businesses

The CMA’s enforcement approach has implications far beyond the media and marketing services sectors. Any business operating digital sales journeys, subscription models, online pricing or customer retention strategies may face greater scrutiny around transparency and fairness.

For many organisations, this goes beyond updating terms and conditions or adjusting website wording. Businesses may need to assess whether elements of their customer journey, particularly those designed to encourage quicker purchasing decisions or reduce cancellations, could be viewed by regulators as unfair or misleading.

There is also a clear forward-looking aspect to the regime. Further subscription contract rules are expected to come into force in 2027, including requirements around auto-renewals, reminder notices, cooling-off rights and cancellation processes. For subscription and recurring revenue businesses, this should be viewed as a preparation window to strengthen processes rather than something to address later.

Daniel Lever, Corporate Audit Partner, commented:
The key issue for many businesses is that consumer protection compliance is increasingly a board-level commercial risk rather than simply a legal issue. Businesses are now being expected to demonstrate that pricing models and subscription processes across digital customer journeys can withstand regulatory scrutiny as well as deliver growth.”

Preparing for the new enforcement environment

The businesses best placed for the new regime will be those reviewing customer journeys now, including pricing presentation, review governance, influencer controls, subscription processes and wider digital persuasion techniques.
The real shift under the DMCC Act is not simply the introduction of rules, but the extent to which the CMA’s enhanced enforcement powers could reshape everyday digital growth practices across multiple sectors.