Brussels, 12/04/2016 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission's plans are firming for unjustified geographical blocking and the responsibility of platforms. It is reported to broadly defend the idea of 'selling as you do at home' and keeping a directive on e-commerce. This is what emerged from a meeting of Commissioners on Tuesday 12 April.
Since the launch of a digital single market strategy in May 2015, the Commission has been regularly organising high-level meetings to discuss progress and given policy guidelines for future proposals. This time, there were eight Commissioners and ten representatives of Commissioners who discussed unjustified geographical blockage and the responsibility of platforms; two issues that had already been subject to public consultation. Commissioner Ansip tweeted at the end of the meeting that the meeting of Commissioners had confirmed selling as if at home for geographical blocking and keeping the measures relating to a safe haven for platforms.
Geographical blocking and parcel delivery. In its strategy for a single digital market, the European Commission announced plans to put an end to unjustified geographical blocking. It pointed out that this means putting restrictions or applying different conditions to clients buying online depending on whether they reside or their nationality, which result in preventing access to websites located in other member states. During the 12 April meeting, the Commissioners decided to distinguish between online sales and parcel deliveries. They want companies to sell their products to other countries without discrimination (whether or not they are operating from the member state in which they are registered or a different member state). The Commissioners would allow them to set different delivery charges. The Commission is, however, keen to make delivery prices more transparent.
Platforms would not be liable. The public consultation on platforms from 24 September and 6 January revealed great disagreements about how intermediaries should be treated. Tweeting after the meeting, Ansip said that the policy approach for online platforms in Europe would be issue-based rather than horizontal. In other words, the Commission is not planning to revise the electronic commerce directive (2000/31/EC), whereby platforms are not liable for the content they publish. The option chosen is reported to be rather one of clarification about measures relating to the withdrawal of illegal content. Such clarification may be published in a communication on copyright planned for December. The Commission will publish a separate communication in June on the economic and social role of online platforms. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)