More than 90 percent of Japanese companies that have business deals with major information technology firms that operate and control online service platforms want these firms to improve their trading practices, according to a survey conducted by the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry.
In the survey responses, the companies demand that these IT firms revise their practices in areas including operations and contracts. The results highlight businesses' maladies resulting from an oligopoly on the part of the major IT firms.
In July this year, the economy ministry, the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry, and the Fair Trade Commission set up an expert panel to discuss how such IT companies should be regulated.
The survey was conducted ahead of the compilation of an interim report about the issue.
It was carried out online in October, and 2,000 companies responded. Of them, 1,933 were small or midsize companies.
These companies are assumed to have deals with huge U.S.-based IT firms such as Amazon.com and Google in the fields of online advertising, online shopping, app sales and other activities.
According to the survey, 56 percent of the companies replied that they want many of the IT firms to improve their operations, contracts and trading practices related to their service platforms, and thus feel discontented with the current situation. Forty percent said that they want some IT firms to improve in these areas.
Only 2.4 percent replied that they are mostly satisfied and do not feel discontent.
In detailing their complaints, 86 percent of all respondents said that they have suffered damage as a result of the IT firms unilaterally changing the rules for using their service platforms or how the platforms operate.
Moreover, 85 percent said that the usage fees and commissions imposed by the firms are relatively high.
However, the survey also revealed that the companies feel there are advantages to their business with the firms.
Forty-two percent of the companies replied that they want to expand their use of the service platforms from their current levels. This was much higher than the 17 percent that replied they want to scale down their use of the platforms.
Many of the companies in the former group cited such benefits as attracting new customers and the fact that they can entrust the collection of sales revenue to the IT companies.
These IT firms each have an overwhelmingly advantageous position in their respective fields. Thus it is not easy for companies with business agreements with them to switch to other sales channels.
In total, two-thirds of the surveyed companies felt it would be difficult to change their sales channels; 33 percent replied with very difficult and another 33 percent chose difficult.
It is assumed that the companies that feel discontented have no other choice but to exercise patience, even if they are forced by the IT firms to accept unfair deals due to the latter group's dominant position.
The government's expert panel is scheduled early this week to publicize its interim report on how to strengthen regulations on the major companies. As a pillar of the new regulations, the report will propose establishing a new monitoring team comprised of experts.
The panel is scheduled to disclose more details of the survey results at the same time.
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