Future European rules on fairness and transparency for professional users of online intermediation services will not apply to operating system software. This was decided during the inter-institutional negotiations on the Regulation on relations between platforms and companies (P2B).
Intermediation platforms cover marketplaces, application shops, social media open to companies and price comparison tools.
The negotiating meeting, which ended in the early hours of Thursday 14 February, broadly maintained the flexible approach proposed by the European Commission, with some adjustments to satisfy Parliament's desire to introduce more fairness obligations.
Fairness and unfair practices
Finally, this term of equity appears in a recital referring to the field of business. Three of the five unfair practices that the European Parliament asked to be included are included in an article in the final text. This concerns relative practices: - retroactive contractual clauses that are detrimental; - the use of confidential information of the user company after the expiry of the contract; - the continuation of clauses or practices that hinder or discourage a business user's contractual right to terminate his relationship with a supplier.
Contrary to what the European Parliament wanted, the final text does not include operating system software in its scope. It doesn't prohibit neither a platform from promoting its own services, nor contains a circumvention clause. Instead, the provisional agreement contains a clarification in the provisions on differentiated treatment. Online intermediation services controlling the underlying technical interface will be required to be transparent about any differentiated treatment they give to their own or controlled services in this regard.
Obligation of transparency
For the rest, the text contains mainly transparency obligations. It requires platforms to communicate their terms and conditions in a transparent, accessible and readable manner, and to notify any changes to them. It also requires platform intermediaries and search engines to indicate in a clear and understandable way the main parameters (and not all parameters, as requested by the European Parliament) that determine the ranking.
Finally, all platforms will need to set up an internal complaint handling system to assist business users. Only the smallest in terms of number of employees or turnover will be exempt from this requirement. Platforms will also be required to indicate, in their terms and conditions, the name of an ombudsman with whom they are willing to deal when, for example, the complaints handling system has not been successful.
"This is a rather weak text. But it has the merit of putting a foot in the door through the revision clause", said Philippe Juvin (EPP, France).
The new rules will apply 12 months after their adoption and will be reviewed within 18 months to ensure that they keep pace with market developments. (Original version in French by Sophie Petitjean)