Brussels - The European Union’s executive unveiled plans Wednesday to break down cross-border barriers to internet traffic, in an effort to boost e-commerce and make it easier for people to shop online or access digital content from other EU countries.
Better use of the digital sector could help the European Union recover from its economic crisis, but European internet companies and start-ups have found it hard to expand beyond their domestic markets, while US companies such as Google dominate the field.
The European Commission’s initiative “aims to redress the balance that has seen US tech giants dominate the online world,” according to Mark Skilton, an IT expert at the Warwick Business School.
EU Digital Economy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger said the bloc must “catch up” with competing markets in the United States, South Korea, India, China and Japan.
But the EU is not taking a “protectionist” approach, sources in Brussels insisted Wednesday.
European consumers often face difficulties trying to buy goods from websites in other EU countries, or are hampered by high cross-border delivery costs. Audiovisual content, such as video-on-demand, is often restricted to domestic audiences only.
Breaking down these barriers could generate up to 415 billion euros (463 billion dollars) in additional growth and create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, according to the commission.
Its strategy contains 16 proposals to be introduced during 2015-16, aimed at making the EU “fit for a digital age,” in the words of Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker.
“I want to see every consumer getting the best deals and every business accessing the widest market – wherever they are in Europe,” Juncker said in a statement.
These proposals will include: rules making it easier to buy and sell goods across EU borders; cheaper parcel delivery services; an end to unjustified national restrictions on content; updated copyright laws; simpler value-added tax rules; and an overhaul of telecoms rules.
At the same time, the commission plans to analyse the role of online platforms - such as Google, Facebook or Amazon - to check whether they are misusing their strong market position, what they do with information they receive, or how they set prices.
The commission could put forward additional regulations for online platforms, depending on the outcome of its research which is due to wrap up next year, Oettinger said.
It will also look at how best to protect personal data, and how to tackle illegal content online.
Industry associations broadly welcomed the proposals. BusinessEurope expressed hope that the strategy will “grasp the opportunities that digital brings to our economy,” while telecoms industry group Etno said that citizens and businesses demand “swift action” to improve services online.
But campaign groups warned that changes to copyright rules and to national restrictions on content must not be at the expense of artists, while others said the proposals do not go far enough to protect personal data.
Also Wednesday, the commission also launched an inquiry into the e-commerce sector, amid suspicions that retailers may be
deliberately hampering cross-border online trade.
Companies and stakeholders will be asked in the coming weeks to provide information, with the commission planning to present its initial findings in mid-2016.
ANA-DPA