Activities of David BORRELLI related to 2015/2147(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Towards a Digital Single Market Act (debate) IT
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on Towards a Digital Single Market Act PDF (619 KB) DOC (373 KB)
Amendments (59)
Amendment 17 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 a (new)
Citation 8 a (new)
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 b (new)
Citation 8 b (new)
- having regard to Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector,
Amendment 20 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 8 c (new)
Citation 8 c (new)
- having regard to the Commission communications of 15 May 2003 and of 7 March 2007 on the implementation of the Data Protection Directive, Communication to the European Parliament and the Council COM (2003)0265 final and COM(2007)0087 final,
Amendment 36 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the continuously expanding use of the internet and mobile communications has deeply changed the way users communicate, invent, consume and share; whereas this has expanded the market place, facilitating access by smcitizens interact with each other, with the government, with businesses and with civil society, and has dynamically companies to a customer base of 500 million customers and the development by entrepreneurs of new ideasnformed a new concept of "digital citizenship" still very unequally distributed among geographic areas, age groups, and socioeconomic cohorts of the Union;
Amendment 38 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the use of the internet and mobile communications has changed the way usersse new "digital citizens", together with government, business and civil society actors, have developed innovative ways to communicate, participate, invent, consume and share; whereas this, actively involving a significant part of their lives; and furthermore such a change has expanded the market place, facilitating access by smallnd speeding the access of companies to a potential customer base of 500 million European customers, and the development by entrepreneurs of new ideas;
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A b (new)
Recital A b (new)
Ab. whereas these deep changes have at its core a new figure of "citizen- consumer", whose active involvement in the digital market place goes way beyond the mere act of purchase of goods and services, generates a rich variety of interwoven, multidirectional flows (physical, monetary and informative), and brings new value, new challenges and new opportunities for the whole social, economic and politic fabrics of the Union;
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A g (new)
Recital A g (new)
Ag. whereas the digital environment is understood by a significant share of European citizens as a public good, therefore expecting to enjoy in this area high-performance, affordable public services available to a vast majority of citizens, if not all;
Amendment 60 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas the new model of deeply intensified interaction, by its own nature, goes beyond borders, distances and many other physical constraints, and as a consequence does not only connect "digital citizens" within the Union, but allows them to reach out to, and to be reached by, citizens and businesses all over the world; whereas this connectivity means that the Digital Single Market must be conceived and implemented in close interrelationship with the digital realities and on-going developments all over the world;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A c (new)
Recital A c (new)
Ac. whereas the management of such complexity involves harnessing informative flows of an unprecedented scale and richness, to which the whole society contributes, and from which the whole society must benefit;
Amendment 62 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A d (new)
Recital A d (new)
Ad. whereas the Union, together with the different levels of national, regional and local governments, must guarantee that no single player, either public or private, will be allowed to benefit unduly from the new all-encompassing digital environment;
Amendment 64 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A e (new)
Recital A e (new)
Ae. whereas it is generally agreed that the informative flows generated by a fully functioning Digital Single Market can only be productively managed with a continuously increasing use of artificial intelligence, for aggregating data, identifying and interpreting patterns, and recognizing emerging structures; whereas such combination of activities could likely bring an unprecedented development of this field, which in itself is largely unregulated and even un-discussed, with enormous political, ethical, legal and technical implications;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A f (new)
Recital A f (new)
Af. whereas a highly-participative, highly- inclusive Digital Single Market can only be designed and implemented through processes that are equally participative and inclusive, creatively summoning and combining the vision, values, strengths, knowledge, skills and experiences of the whole European society;
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas all Union policies and legislation in the area of the Digital Single Market should allow and stimulate new opportunities for users and businesses to emerge, especially within today’s service society, while taking a holistic approach that considers their social dimension as they inevitably involvecitizens, governments, businesses and civil society to emerge and become well-established realities; whereas the Union, acting institutionally in such direction, must take stock of the modern European society, strongly oriented to services, where citizens legitimately expect to have similar rules for similar services; whereas these actions must be guided by a holistic approach that pays the utmost attention to the transformative social dimension of such major, structural changes;
Amendment 82 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B a (new)
Recital B a (new)
Ba. whereas such emphasis on services must be balanced with a renewed, performing and sustainable industrial economy, which will also greatly profit from the digital transformation;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas although 75% of the value added by the digital economy comes from traditional industry; whereasnon-ICT industry, its integration of digital technology remains weakmuch slower and weaker than desirable, with only 1.7% of EU enterprises making full use of advanced digital technologies and only 14% of SMEs using the internet as a sales channel;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C a (new)
Recital C a (new)
Ca. whereas a similar lag affects the inclusion of citizens in the digital environment, i.e. "digital inclusion", where many studies point out that it is essential to act proactively and generously towards senior citizens, inhabitants of rural areas, minorities and other citizens in a situation of comparative socioeconomic weakness; whereas their inclusion must be understood as a great opportunity for enhancing market development, strengthening social fabrics, and increasing all kinds of participation throughout all the European Union and its area of influence;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C b (new)
Recital C b (new)
Cb. whereas the innovative technical nature of many of the issues regarding the Digital Single Market require a special effort to reach out to European citizenship, communicating towards them in an accessible way, and making sure that the DSM implications are understandable for the average citizen; insofar such understanding is a prerequisite for the generalised, active involvement and participation that the Union strives to achieve;
Amendment 122 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas a high level of consumer protection and satisfaction necessarily entails choice, flexibility, information and trust in a securan online environment providing a balanced combination of safety and security for all participants (especially minors and other vulnerable cohorts), wide choice, equal access opportunities, legal certainty, operational flexibility, transparency, interoperability and reliable information (both top-down and peer-to- peer); whereas such a balance, properly monitored and enforced, is key for breeding rational trust in the online environment;
Amendment 160 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D b (new)
Recital D b (new)
Db. whereas the ambitious programmatic development of the Digital Single Market imposes on European Union policy- makers the need to have available state- of-the-art, independent scientific and technological advice regarding issues on stake, in order to assess adequately the corresponding opportunities, challenges and risks;
Amendment 165 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D a (new)
Recital D a (new)
Da. whereas such complex combination of factors must be seamlessly embedded in a solid overall frame of guarantees regarding the fundamental rights of our citizens (especially in the fields of privacy and data protection), in order to truly and efficiently achieve its goals regarding consumer protection and satisfaction;
Amendment 166 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Welcomes the Communication on ‘'A Digital Single Market Strategy for Europe’'; believes thatsupports the horizontal approach taken, and is convinced that it needs to be strengthened in its design, implementation and controls as the digital sectorenvironment where the Digital Single Market takes place affects every dimension of the society and the economy;
Amendment 191 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Believes that better regulation should help to examine policy through a digital lensensure that the design and implementation of policies systematically includes a digital perspective, in order to encompass all existing realities and many of the upcoming possibilities, and facilitate the adaptation of legislation and enforcement frameworks in the light of new technologies and new business models to prevent fragmentensure a sustained integration of the digital single market;
Amendment 219 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Considers that usercitizens’ trust in digital services is vital to innovation and growth indevelopment of the digital economy and that reinforcing that trust; stresses that continuously reinforcing that trust, through appropriate, integrated consideration of the plurality of social, legal and communicative factors conditioning it, should be at the basis of both public policy and business models;
Amendment 233 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 b (new)
Paragraph 3 b (new)
3b. Considers that a competitive broadband environment is a crucial precondition to the achievement of the goals of a Digital Single Market insofar it enables consumers take-up, business diversity, economic pluralism, choice and ultimately the fundamental rights in the digital environment;
Amendment 236 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. reminds in this context that the build- up of any kind of trust is slow and gradual, whilst loss of trust can be steep, almost instantaneous, and very difficult to recover; points out that a variety of business-related issues are unfortunately eroding that trust, such as lack of tariff transparency, difficult portability, purposefully induced obsolescence, and increasing spam and undesired publicity, among others; accordingly, they must be tackled in the development of the Digital Single Market;
Amendment 241 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3 a (new)
Paragraph 3 a (new)
3a. Stresses that building trust in the digital single market in the minds of citizens not only requires effective guarantees and protection of their rights and freedoms but also depends on citizens’ own perception and awareness of these guarantees and this protection;
Amendment 245 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Stresses the urgent need for the Commission and Member States to promote a more dynamic economy for innovation to flourish and for companie, start-ups to enter the market at an increasing rate, and established SMEs to scale up, through the development of e- government, a modernised integrated regulatory framework fit for the emergence and scale- up of innovative businesses and civil society's initiatives, and a long term investment strategy in infrastructure, skills, digital inclusion, research and innovation;
Amendment 281 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Commission, in cooperation with Member States, to further develop initiatives to boost entrepreneurship that rangeand active participation in the digital scene, from changing the mind-set on how success is defined, measured and rewarded, to promoting an entrepreneurial and innovation culture where a vast majority of citizens, businesses of all dimensions, and social agents participate; believes, in addition, that the diversity and specific attributes of the different national innovation hubs couldan be turned into a real competitive advantage for the EU if they are, when effectively interconnected;
Amendment 300 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Is concerned aboutby the different national approaches taken ton regulating the internet and the sharing economy; urges the Commission to take action to preserve the integrity of the single market and the internet as an open and, global, neutral, inclusive platform for communication and innovation, participation and innovation, based on fair competition and consistent consumer protection standards;
Amendment 347 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Stresses that this open model of internet is the basic substrate for developing the Digital Single Market, as well as a sharing, innovative economy and, at the same time, a variety of factors involving digital citizenship and a broad range of participation modes, ranging from the fully commercial to the non- profit;
Amendment 356 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Deplores the absence of international regulation in key sectors of the digital market, such as the management of domains and network standards, and the fact that, instead, this role is entrusted to private bodies which are not subject to adequate monitoring and supervision; calls on the Commission, therefore, to intervene to establish a strategy for regulating digital activity;
Amendment 386 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Points out that in the absence of an appropriate uniform EU legal framework, national rules are addressing emerging issues in the digital market inconsistently, with the risk of allowing potentially harmful situations for the rights of citizens and businesses to arise, in addition to conflicts between taxation laws and labour laws;
Amendment 396 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7b. Considers it advisable for the Commission to assess whether the current competition rules are adequate for meeting the emerging challenges of a rapidly changing digital market, in particular to prevent operators in a dominant position from abusing that position to the detriment of smaller operators, or to prevent restrictions to competition itself, at the expense of citizens;
Amendment 417 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Believes that a full harmonisation of the legal framework governing online sales irrespective of whether they are cross- border or domestic sales, while maintaining the coherence of online and offline rules regarding legal remedies, constitutes the most practical and proportionate approachapproach that is best able to meet the expectations of businesses and citizens; calls, moreover, for greater consistency, particularly with regard to taxation, the absence of which on the one hand allows large companies to exploit the diversity of rules in order to avoid tax and to pay taxes that are often negligible compared to the profits made, and on the other, induces national authorities to increase the tax burden on operators which are easier to monitor, such as small businesses or family businesses;
Amendment 429 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 a (new)
Paragraph 8 a (new)
8a. Points out that the greatest difficulties in cross-border trade, especially in the digital sector, are due to the uncertainty as to which national law is applicable to specific transactions; reminds the Commission that a balance needs to be struck between the need for certainty and simplicity for manufacturers and distributors on the one hand and consumers/purchasers on the other, and that therefore the possible application of the principle according to which the rules of the state of origin must apply should not ultimately reduce the level of consumer protection;
Amendment 440 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Considers that there is a risk that the Commission’s proposals entail a growing disparity between the applicable legal standards for offline and online purchases, when, conversely, also in terms of consumer perception, these two forms of trade should be made as equal as possible;
Amendment 448 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Regrets the imprecision of the Commission’s proposal regarding a legislative measure for a more comprehensive online sales law that covers digital content products as well as tangible goods; the latter in particular are adversely affected by the different national standards applied, such as required technical specifications, which oblige producers and distributors to adapt their products and packaging if they want to sell across borders; this involves an inevitable increase in costs, particularly for SMEs;
Amendment 468 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Calls on the Commission to establish a regulatory framework in which it is clear what the rights of buyers and duties of sellers are with regard to transactions carried out on platforms that enable users to play both roles, in which the role of seller is not always regarded in the same way as that of a professional trader, leaving a grey area as regards the proper application of the relevant and generally accepted buyers’ rights;
Amendment 533 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15a. Points out that delivery is a major concern for those who buy online and for SMEs, and that certain time frames and clear traceability systems should therefore be guaranteed as far as possible, with efficiency improved and costs reduced; is of the view that in order to enable consumers to make informed choices, the environmental and social impact of the delivery services offered should be made clearer;
Amendment 573 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Considers that ambitious actions are needed to improve access to legal digital content, in particular by ending geo- blocking practices and unfair price discrimination based on geographical location, which often have the effect of building monopolies or oligopolies and, in some cases, conceal protectionist measures;
Amendment 594 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Regrets that while the Commission is attempting to build a European single market, there are still internal trade barriers that prevent citizens from using digital content that has been legally purchased in one Member State in the rest of the Union, freely and without restriction; stresses that these restrictions may act as an incentive to use online piracy systems to get around obstacles that are perceived to be unjust, having an adverse effect not only on the freedom of citizens but also on the profits of distributors; calls on the Commission better to coordinate the laws on copyright and licences, in order to put an end to such inequalities;
Amendment 605 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Supports in particular the Commission’s planned scrutiny of the practical enforcement of Article 20(2) of the Services Directive in order to analyse possible patterns of discrimination against consumers based on their country of residence; calls on the Commission to identify and define concise case groups of justified discrimination under Article 20(2) of the Services Directive in order to outlaw unjustified discriminatory behaviour by private entities and in order to provide interpretative assistance to authorities responsible for applying Article 20(2) in practice; calls on the Commission to make concerted efforts to add the provision of Article 20(2) to the Annex of Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 in order to utilise the Consumer Protection Cooperation Network’s investigation and enforcement powers;
Amendment 635 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. ETakes note that, according to the Commission's Strategy, there exists an investment gap in order to meet the digital agenda targets, and accordingly emphasises that incentivising a combination of public and private investments in fast and ultra-fast communication networks is a requirement for any digital progress, with competition remainingboth a previous requirement and a pulling factor regarding any digital progress; in this context, stresses that safeguarding sustainable competition, together with bringing large-scale digital inclusion, remain the main drivergoals of infrastructure investments, and that they in turn drive innovation, affordable prices and choices for consumers; considers that little evidence exists, in the still fragmented European telecommunications market, of a link between consolidation of operators and increased investment in networkpermanently flexible choices for consumers;
Amendment 664 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 a (new)
Paragraph 19 a (new)
19a. Notes that scarce or no evidence exists, in the still fragmented European telecommunications market, of a correlation between consolidation of operators and increased investment in networks; encourages a regulatory design which provides ample opportunities for new entrepreneurial players, and which discourages the formation of oligopolies and other forms of market distortion;
Amendment 676 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19 a (new)
Paragraph 19 a (new)
19a. Stresses that future rules affecting the development and functioning of markets should be more focused on the interests of European citizens by allowing them to benefit from high-performance broadband access offers at affordable prices and, therefore, fostering both the take-up of broadband services and the entrepreneurial development of initiatives;
Amendment 699 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Stresses that since the development of over- the-top services has increased demand and competition to the benefit of consumers, modernisation of the telecommunication framework should not lead to more regulatory burdens, but should drive innov, and at the same time it has brought to the centre of the debate questions about essential issues like neutrality, privacy and data protection, and in general about fragmented consumer protection standards; underlines that the modernisation of the telecommunication framework should strive to design for the whole European Union carefully assessed and balanced regulatory burdens which take in account the needs of citizens, SMEs and entrepreneurs, and drive innovation, participation and fair competition;
Amendment 726 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20 a (new)
Paragraph 20 a (new)
20a. Underlines that the modernisation of the telecommunication framework should strive to design for the whole European Union carefully assessed and balanced regulatory burdens which take in account the needs of citizens, SMEs and entrepreneurs, and drive innovation, participation and fair competition;
Amendment 742 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21
Paragraph 21
21. Calls as a priority for a harmonised European framework for spectrum allocation to boost long-term infrastructure investments; requests from the Commission a detailed updated inventory of any existing national roadblocks which could be hindering such harmonisation;
Amendment 778 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 22
Paragraph 22
22. Stresses that a uniform enforcement of the Connected Continent package, including the drive towards the end of end- user roaming surcharges and the pledge to enforce the net neutrality principle, requires the establishment of a single independent European telecommunications regulator, adequately empowered and resourced, and interacting actively and constructively with national regulators, under defined procedures, ensuring a consistent application over Member States of all rules and standards concerning the Digital Single Market;
Amendment 805 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. UrgAppreciates the Commission to develop an innovation-friendly policy th's initiative to analyse the role of plat fosters competition between, and innovation in, online platforms; considers that the priorities should be transparency, facilitation of switching between platforms or online services, access to platforms, and identifying and addressing barriers to the emergence and scale-up of platforms;rms in the Digital Economy as part of the up- coming Internal Market Strategy; notes the significant difficulties involved in the mere definition of what a platform is, and how should it be managed for the common good; accordingly:
Amendment 812 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23
Paragraph 23
23. Urges the Commission to develop an innovation-friendly policy that fosters competition between, and innovation in, online platforms; considers that the priorities should be transparency, facilitation ofthe removal of barriers to switching between platforms or online services, access to platforms, and identifying and addressing barriers to the emergence and scale-up of platforms;
Amendment 834 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 a (new)
Paragraph 23 a (new)
23a. Calls on the Commission to expand this initiative into a wide-ranging, multidisciplinary, in-depth discussion, involving all stakeholders, including civil society, about the present and future role of the online platforms in the Digital Single Markets, including but not limited to the issues of stimulus to entrepreneurship, creation and innovation, regulatory control and enforcement, avoidance of distortions to the European market, interaction with third countries' markets, citizen participation and involvement, guarantees for fundamental rights; considers that only through such discussion processes it becomes possible to seize the opportunity to bring forward European strengths and specificities and therefore to aim towards a European leadership in the field;
Amendment 835 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 23 b (new)
Paragraph 23 b (new)
23b. Urges the Commission to develop an innovation-friendly policy that fosters competition and innovation between online platforms, and active participation of citizens in them; considers that the priorities should be transparency, removal of all constraints to users switching between platforms or online services, access to platforms, open standards, interoperability, data protection by design and by default, identifying and addressing barriers to the emergence and scale up of platforms;
Amendment 849 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
Amendment 854 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24
Paragraph 24
24. Appreciates the Commission’s initiative to analyse the role of platforms in the Digital Economy as part of the upcoming Internal Market Strategy; points out that often, platform operators can take advantage of their role to create distortions in the market, harming some distributors and restricting choice for consumers, especially when they too are distributors; calls on the Commission, therefore, to ensure that free competition rules are not breached on digital platforms;
Amendment 876 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Calls on the Commission to ensure that the role of digital platforms does not stifle the growth of SMEs that sell their products and services through them, given that most of the commercial risk and responsibility towards buyers is shifted on to those very SMEs;
Amendment 891 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 25
Paragraph 25
25. Encourages the Commission to analyse the need to protect consumers in the sharing economy and, where appropriate and if necessary, to come forward with proposals to ensure the adequacy of the consumer-related legislation framework in the digital sphere, including possibletake into consideration the emerging phenomenon of the sharing economy, in order to strike a fair balance that enables innovative forms of business that are useful for citizens to continue to expand, without unnecessarily harming those who operate in the sector; calls on the Commission to establish a clear regulatory framework which prevents uncertainty and ensures compliance with the rules without restricting free competition and initiative, which includes proposals to protect consumers appropriately in the digital sphere, including the prevention of and fight against any abuses;
Amendment 944 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)
Paragraph 26 a (new)
26a. Reminds the Commission that in order for the digital single market to work effectively, a climate of trust in the system needs to be built for both consumers and distributors, by means of supervisory and assessment tools that are unbiased, accurate and independent, secure payment systems and simple, easy-to-use dispute settlement instruments; recommends, moreover, that even though the establishment of these instruments can be left to free initiative and the inventiveness of market operators, the Commission should provide uniform guidelines and promote the exchange of best practices;
Amendment 965 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 b (new)
Paragraph 26 b (new)
26b. Takes the view that facilitating the exchange of information, including personal information and sensitive data, should not result in reduced protection of citizens' privacy and that, therefore, the supervisory authorities should be required to ensure that such information is adequately protected and does not become a tradable commodity without the knowledge of the individuals concerned;