In this issue of EU Legislative Update, we inform you on the importance of the adoption of the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act, which set a global precedent for regulating digital services and establish new rules for online marketplaces, social media, and search engines in the EU to create a safer and a more transparent online environment. In addition, an agreement was reached on a parallel piece of legislation, the Digital Markets Act, which will introduce complement competition law by introducing specific ex ante regulation for the largest “gatekeeper” platforms.
Another important step in the EU's efforts to build a digital single market came when the European Commission published its new proposal for a Data Act. It aims to create a single market for data, where data will be more accessible and data sharing will be easier and more intensive. In a separate article we also discuss the impact that the Data Act may have on database protection and trade secrets.
For the telecommunications sector, we provide information on the update and guidelines of BEREC, which reflects the stricter position on the so-called zero tariff.
Finally, we provide information on current public consultations.
Additional key contacts & authors: Francine Cunningham, Marjolein Geus, Sven-Erik Heun, Hein Hobbelen, Feyo Sickinghe, Anthony Rosen, Katharine Stephens, Toby Bond