The impact of draft personal data protection (PDP) bill on digital platform businesses

Abstract

The draft Personal Data Protection (PDP) Bill introduced by the Government of India has wide impact on digital economy and digital platform business models, as well as potential to create new opportunities for innovation through data sharing. The draft PDP Bill aims to provide consumer with control of their personal data, provide trust in digital economy and harmonize data protection across the Indian digital market. This policy paper attempts to analyze and understand how the draft PDP Bill might impact the digital platform businesses. The impact on their revenue model, growth strategies of established businesses, exploiting competitive advantages, and possible positive effects are explored. Privacy as fundamental right being the core principle of draft PDP Bill hinders network effects, winner takes all structure, and lock-in. It enhances the data security and digital rights for the citizens by establishing common standards, thus increasing competitive pressures and increasing consumer trust in digital market. We will do the case study of digital social media platform facebook and then policy analysis in the context of data portability, right to be forgotten, anonymisation and possible ‘new’ digital business model based on explicit consent of the user. Finally, the paper comes up with recommendations for data governance and policy mechanisms from the lens of technological, legal, market and institutional framework required to ensure personal data privacy, rebuild trust among citizens and ensure growth of digital economy and platform businesses of future.