The rules will strengthen liability for digital platforms, services and products, and complete the Commission’s work on the Digital Single Market.
Background: The outgoing European Commission has been particularly active in regulating the digital space, or in laying the foundations for future regulation. This has resulted in regulations such as the Platform-to-Business Regulation, and in the review of long-standing pieces of legislation such as the Data Protection Directive (replaced by the GDPR in 2018), the Copyright Directive, and the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD). More recently, the EC has turned its attention to online harm and disinformation, but has yet to produce a comprehensive regulatory proposal. The incoming European Commission looks to continue the path initiated by its predecessor, by proposing a Digital Services Act (DSA) for online platforms.
What will the DSA look like? While it is too early to predict the content of the Act in detail, its objectives are already clear. The DSA will strengthen liability rules for digital platforms, services and products, and cover a broad range of digital activities. It will seek to address issues ranging from hate speech online, to “opaque political advertising”, and would apply to tech giants such as Google and Facebook, as well as ISPs and cloud services. The Act would update the e-Commerce Directive dating back to 2000, and build on the recently revised AVMSD and Copyright Directive, as well as recent proposals to tackle terrorist content online.
A new regulatory standard: As has been the case with the GDPR, the EC will try to set a new worldwide regulatory standard with the DSA. It will look to harmonise the framework at the EU level, addressing the fragmentation which is emerging with rules on hate speech in countries such as Germany and France, and also introduce an “enhanced regulatory structure” to ensure regulators better cooperate with one another and are equipped with stronger powers and resources.
When will this happen? The new Commission is likely to take power toward the end of 2019, or early in 2020, once all Commissioners have been appointed. The political guidelines issued by President-Elect Ursula Von Der Leyen state that a comprehensive proposal will be presented in the second half of 2020.
