Commission publishes text of proposed regulation of digital gatekeepers

 

Commission publishes text of proposed regulation of digital gatekeepers

The European Commission has revealed its proposal for regulation of the digital sector in its Digital Markets Act.

The Digital Markets Act would apply to “gatekeepers” who control at least one “core platform service”.  This will cover search engines, social networking services, certain messaging services, operating systems and online intermediation services.

Only companies of a certain size would designated as gatekeepers.  Once a company meets the thresholds, it will be presumed to occupy that position unless it shows evidence to the contrary.

Gatekeepers would be subject to certain obligations including allowing inter-operability and providing access to information and data.

The new legislation would allow the Commission to conduct market investigations to identify gatekeepers that are not captured by the existing rules or to identify compliance failures.

The Commission would have investigatory powers to request information, conduct dawn raids and impose fines up to 10% of the company's total worldwide annual turnover for breach.

The European Parliament and the Member States will discuss the Commission's proposals in the ordinary legislative procedure.  If adopted, the final text will be directly applicable across the European Union.

https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_2347