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Silicon Republic spoke with Leo Moore, a partner and head of technology at William Fry, about the numerous facets of the EU's digital reforms in this decade to keep the bloc ahead of technology.
Leo Moore, partner and head of the technology group at William Fry, states that the EU is following a human-centered, sustainable vision for the digital society during the digital decade to empower citizens and businesses.
Moore refers to the EU's Digital Decade policy program, which is a comprehensive framework outlining specific goals and objectives in Europe's digital transformation until 2030. The framework, recently published by the European Commission, will impact how businesses utilize and engage with non-personal data, technology platforms, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence.
According to Moore, its core objective is to mitigate the risks associated with online services and ensure a "harmonized approach" to managing these risks across the entire EU. "This will result in legal reforms creating a seismic effect that will impact the entire technology sector," he adds.
However, what are the specific digital reforms being proposed, and how will they impact businesses? According to Moore, the Digital Decade framework will result in new legislation across four key areas: digital services, AI, cybersecurity, and data.
"It is anticipated that these new laws will result in a secure, safe, and sustainable digital environment for individuals," Moore further explains, "However, it will create new obligations and regulations for affected businesses, necessitating investments and new capabilities to ensure compliance with rather complex and demanding new rules."
Data, AI & cyber
Within the EU, artificial intelligence (AI) is addressed through two new laws aimed at managing risks and monitoring its application. The first, the AI Act, was adopted in June to mitigate the dangers associated with the technology. The second is the AI Liability Directive, which regulates damages caused by AI systems and applies to companies involved in the development or provision of AI products and services.
According to Moore, "It will apply to suppliers and users of AI systems and victims of harm and/or damage caused by these systems. Companies developing or providing AI-enabled products and services will be subject to this directive."
Furthermore, the Digital Services Act (DSA) and Digital Markets Act are introduced to limit the power of large tech companies and enhance safety and transparency on platforms. At the national level in Ireland, a new regulatory authority, Coimisiún na Meán, is being established under the Online Safety and Media Regulation Act (OSMR) to combat the spread of harmful online content.
Moore explains that "OSMR applies to providers of broadcasting services; audiovisual on-demand media services; and all 'relevant online services' that the Commission deems subject to online safety codes."
Within the data category of the EU's digital reforms, there is the Data Act, which facilitates third-party access to data from connected devices and smart objects. Moore emphasizes that this will strengthen the GDPR's "right to data portability." The EU Data Governance Act (DGA) aims to make more data available and facilitate data sharing across sectors and EU countries.
Moore states, "DGA applies to personal and non-personal data and imposes obligations on public authorities, data-sharing services (data intermediaries), and data community organizations."
He adds that there is also the E-Privacy Regulation to enhance online privacy and provide additional protection for electronic communications. Finally, Moore mentions NIS2, an EU directive that enhances cybersecurity by modernizing the legal framework to keep pace with digitization. The Digital Operational Resilience Act and Cyber Resilience Act impose requirements on financial entities and strengthen cybersecurity rules to ensure "more secure" hardware and software.
Irish regulatory bodies will play a central role.
Of the top ten technology companies from the USA with regional headquarters within the EU, Ireland hosts a significant nine of them. This is complemented by a growing domestic technology sector, including many unicorns and soon-to-be unicorns.
"With such a large group of technology companies headquartered in Ireland, the recently established Irish regulatory authorities will play a central role in the harmonized implementation of regulations in collaboration and cooperation with other regulatory bodies across the EU," argues Moore. "Current regulatory bodies like the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC), Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, and ComReg will oversee the implementation of new legislation falling within their respective areas of responsibility but will also collaborate with other regulatory bodies."
In summary, Moore asserts that the EU is transitioning from a digital environment that was "largely self-regulated" to one that is "highly regulated."
"He suggests that this will require affected companies to seek education and then implement legal and organizational reforms to enact necessary changes that govern the use of the internet and the provision of online services," he adds that this will create new job opportunities and increased legislation.
"With its unique position within the EU, Ireland must ensure that it has relevant resources to enforce and monitor those covered by the EU's digital reforms. Although the emerging digital landscape will adapt and harmonize laws across the EU, there is a concern that some of the laws may also hinder the speed of innovation within the EU," Moore emphasizes.
Source: Silicon Republic