The Role of Data as Potential Entry Barriers
The Role of Data as Potential Entry Barriers

Summary/Abstract: Many economists have dealt with the issue of so-called entry barriers; however, there was controversy on the meaning of the term 'barrier to entry'. Despite a variety of definitions presented in the literature, the approaches face criticism because they do not seem theoretically sound or are not applicable to all cases or industries. While legal aspects shall be considered when entry barriers are examined, economic and legal definitions differ, and legal definitions tend to be too vague and vary across jurisdictions. This text aims at presenting relevant opinions on and possible typologies of entry barriers and adds new aspects by presenting the idea of (proprietary) data being potential entry barriers, as some authors argue that data protection is the new antitrust.

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