Newly proposed EU ePrivacy rules would negatively impact competitive data-driven advertising market

10 January 2017, Brussels – The European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) is warning of serious ramifications for the competitive European data market due to the European Commission’s proposal for the new ePrivacy Regulation. While we appreciate the work and effort the Commission has invested in this proposal, if the new ePrivacy regulation is to support a vibrant Digital Single Market sustained by competitive European companies, the proposal needs to be thoroughly re-examined.

Even though the proposal is an improvement in comparison to the leaked draft, it still takes a very restrictive approach towards third party data-driven business services providers. In the technologically-empowered economy of the 21st century the ability to collect and process data responsibly and legally represents a key competitive advantage. The approach taken by the European Commission does not take into consideration the data-market reality and may provoke the further accumulation of data by a few large global companies, while inadvertently excluding other businesses from the competition.

Finally, EACA regrets that the proposal misses the opportunity to fully streamline newly-proposed privacy rules with the already highly onerous General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which took years to agree on. Some of the future-proof solutions embedded in the GDPR (such as legal grounds for data processing and the concept of pseudonymous data), are notably narrowed down or simply ignored in the proposal.

EACA and its members remain at the disposal of officials of the European Union to work together in order to give consumers the protection they deserve and provide businesses with a competitive environment in which they can thrive.

You can download the statement here.

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For more information, please contact:

Dominic Lyle
Director General
dominic.lyle@eaca.eu
+32 2 740 07 11

Stevan Randjelovic
European Affairs Manager
stevan.randjelovic@eaca.eu
+32 2 740 07 13

About EACA

The European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) represents more than 2 500 communications agencies and agency associations from 30 European countries that directly employ more than 120 000 people. EACA members include advertising, media, digital, branding and PR agencies.  They create and place adverts and develop brand-building campaigns. EACA promotes honest, effective advertising, high professional standards and awareness of the contribution of advertising in a free market economy and encourages close co-operation between agencies, advertisers and media in European advertising bodies. EACA works closely with EU institutions to ensure freedom to advertise responsibly and creatively.

Follow EACA on Twitter: @EACA_eu