Art. 4 Review of the status of gatekeeper | DMA regulation | DMA

This article directly follows on from Article 3, which establishes the process for designating gatekeepers, by setting out how those designations are maintained and kept current over time.

The Commission retains the power to revisit any designation decision — either on its own initiative or upon request — if the underlying facts have changed or were based on inaccurate information.

Beyond reactive adjustments, the article also imposes a structured, ongoing review obligation to ensure the gatekeeper landscape reflects market reality, including whether new undertakings should be brought within scope.

Important points:

The Commission has the power to reconsider, amend, or repeal a gatekeeper designation at any time if the facts underpinning it have substantially changed or were incomplete, incorrect, or misleading.
The Commission is required to review existing gatekeeper designations at least every 3 years, and to assess whether new undertakings qualify as gatekeepers at least every year. Critically, these reviews do not suspend the gatekeeper's existing obligations.
The Commission must publish and continuously update a list of designated gatekeepers and their relevant core platform services subject to the obligations in Chapter III.

1. The Commission may, upon request or on its own initiative, reconsider, amend or repeal at any moment a designation decision adopted pursuant to Article 3 for one of the following reasons:
  1. there has been a substantial change in any of the facts on which the designation decision was based;
  2. the designation decision was based on incomplete, incorrect or misleading information.
1. The Commission shall regularly, and at least every 3 years, review whether the gatekeepers continue to satisfy the requirements laid down in Article 3(1). That review shall also examine whether the list of core platform services of the gatekeeper which are individually an important gateway for business users to reach end users, as referred to in Article 3(1), point (b), needs to be amended. Those reviews shall have no suspending effect on the gatekeeper’s obligations.
2. The Commission shall also examine at least every year whether new undertakings providing core platform services satisfy those requirements.
3. Where the Commission, on the basis of the reviews pursuant to the first subparagraph, finds that the facts on which the designation of the undertakings providing core platform services as gatekeepers was based, have changed, it shall adopt a decision confirming, amending or repealing the designation decision.
1. The Commission shall publish and update a list of gatekeepers and the list of the core platform services for which they need to comply with the obligations laid down in Chapter III on an on-going basis.