On Monday 14 June, MEPs in the Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) examined the draft opinion prepared for the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) on the proposal for a Regulation on Contestable and fair markets in the digital sector (DMA) (see EUROPE 12728/2).
Several points were raised by the parliamentarians, starting with the importance of being able to react quickly in a constantly changing sector.
“The text is a good basis, but the devil’s in the details. We need a flexible framework that will not be obsolete in a few years. The digital market is changing rapidly. This document must take into account the nature of the digital economy”, said rapporteur Tiemo Wölken (S&D, Germany), who argued that the text should “be adapted as developments occur”.
On the other hand, some MEPs, such as Polish MEP Andrzej Halicki (EPP), insisted that the text should not forget small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs).
“The text should help SMEs. It is not acceptable for gatekeepers to favour their own products or applications”, he stressed, while at the same time arguing that a “clear definition of ‘fair practices’” is needed.
Still on the subject of gatekeepers, several MEPs recalled that the text should put users first and that a fair balance should be found. “Regulators must be given flexibility and power to act. Trade secrets should not be used as an excuse to prevent regulation”, said MEP Stéphane Séjourné (Renew Europe, France).
Several parliamentarians also expressed their concerns about solutions to targeted advertising and the regulation of data sharing. The Commission, for its part, assured that it would take these remarks into account in its future work.
See the draft opinion: https://bit.ly/3gmXvWO (Original version in French by Thomas Mangin)