133 Amendments of Geoffroy DIDIER related to 2020/0374(COD)
Amendment 38 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) A fragmentation of the internal market can only be effectively averted if Member States are prevented from applying national rules which are specific to the types of undertakings and services covered by this Regulation. At the same time, sNothing in this Regulation precludes the Member States from imposing the same or stricter obligations on undertakings in pursuit of legitimate public interests, in accordance with Union law. Legitimate public interests include, among others, consumer protection, the fight against unfair competition, and the protection of freedom and pluralism. In particular, there is nothing in this Regulation to preclude the Member States from pursuing these legitimate public interests by imposing obligations on undertakings with gatekeeper status in accordance with this Regulation. Since this Regulation aims at complementing the enforcement of competition law, it should be specified that this Regulation is without prejudice to Articles 101 and 102 TFEU, to the corresponding national competition rules and to other national competition rules regarding unilateral behaviour that are based on an individualised assessment of market positions and behaviour, including its likely effects and the precise scope of the prohibited behaviour, and which provide for the possibility of undertakings to make efficiency and objective justification arguments for the behaviour in question. However, the application of the latter rules should not affect the obligations imposed on gatekeepers under this Regulation and their uniform and effective application in the internal market.
Amendment 41 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 13 a (new)
Recital 13 a (new)
(13a) Where the gatekeeper has a number of core platform services, separate authentication factors, for example separate user accounts set up for each core platform service, should be possible. It must not be mandatory to combine or link accounts belonging to business or end users.
Amendment 42 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14 a (new)
Recital 14 a (new)
(14a) Gatekeepers may also provide ancillary services aimed at end users, alongside their basic services, and do so in a manner that is indistinguishable for the average user. These ancillary services may compete against the professional users of the platform's basic service and be a significant factor in any market imbalance, leading, ultimately, to an unfair increase in the power of the gatekeeper, including with respect to its commercial partners, such as suppliers of goods and services, who depend on this ancillary service. To prevent gatekeepers from unfairly benefiting from the leverage provided by the ancillary services, these services should also be subject to the obligations applicable to core platform services.
Amendment 60 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 57
Recital 57
(57) In particular gatekeepers which provide access to software application storeCore platform services provided by gatekeepers serve as an important gateway for business users that seek to reach end users. In view of the imbalance in bargaining power between those gatekeepers and business users of their software application stores, those gatekeepers should not be allowed to impose general conditions, including pricing conditions, that would be unfair or lead to unjustified differentiation. Pricing or other general access conditions should be considered unfair if they lead to an imbalance of rights and obligations imposed on business users or confer an advantage on the gatekeeper which is disproportionate to the service provided by the gatekeeper to business users or lead to a disadvantage for business users in providing the same or similar services as the gatekeeper. The following benchmarks can serve as a yardstick to determine the fairness of general access conditions: prices charged or conditions imposed for the same or similar services by another providers of software application storcore platform services; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application store for different related or similar services or to different types of end users; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application storecore platform services for the same service in different geographic regions; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application store for the same service the gatekeeper offers to itself. This obligation should not establish an access right and it should be without prejudice to their ability of providers of software application stores to take the required responsibility in the fight against illegal and unwanted content as set out in Regulation [Digital Services Act].
Amendment 74 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article premier – paragraph 5
Article premier – paragraph 5
5. Member States shall not impose on gatekeepers further obligations by way of laws, regulations or administrative action for the purpose of ensuring contestable and fair markets. This is without prejudice to rules pursuing other legitimate public interests, in compliance with Union law. In particular, nothing in this Regulation precludes Member States from imposing obligations, which are compatible with Union lawpursue a legitimate public interest, on undertakings, including providers of core platform services where these obligations are unrelated to the relevant undertakings having a status of gatekeeper within the meaning of this Regulation in order to protect consumers or to fight against acts of unfair competition.
Amendment 79 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point h b (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point h b (new)
(hb) j) voice assistants.
Amendment 82 #
(ha) i) web browsers.
Amendment 85 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 23 a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 23 a (new)
23a) 'web browsers': software programs used by users of client PCs, mobile devices and other devices to access and interact with web content hosted on servers connected to networks such as the Internet.
Amendment 88 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 12
Recital 12
(12) Weak contestability and unfair practices in the digital sector are more frequent and pronounced for certain digital services than for others. This is the case in particular for widespread and commonly used digital services that mostly directly intermediate between business users and end users and where features such as extreme scale economies, very strong network effects, an ability to connect many business users with many end users through the multi-sidedness of these services, lock-in effects, a lack of multi- homing or vertical integration are the most prevalent. Often, there is only one or very few large providers of those digital services. These providers of core platform services have emerged most frequently as gatekeepers for business users and end users with far-reaching impacts, gaining the ability to easily set commercial conditions and terms in a unilateral and detrimental manner for their business users and end users. Accordingly, it is necessary to focus only on those digital services that are most broadly used by business users and end users and where, based on current and prospective market conditions, concerns about weak contestability and unfair practices by gatekeepers are more apparent and pressing from an internal market perspective.
Amendment 89 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 23 b (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 23 b (new)
23b) 'voice assistants': a software application that is capable of oral dialogue with a user in natural language and which mediates between end users and business users offering voice-based apps.
Amendment 95 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14
Recital 14
(14) A number of other ancillary services, such as identification or payment services and technical services which support the provision of payment services, may be provided by gatekeepers together with their core platform services. As gatekeepers frequently provide the portfolio of their services as part of an integrated ecosystem to which third-party providers of such ancillary services do not have access, at least not subject to equal conditions, and can link the access to the core platform service to take-up of one or more ancillary services, the gatekeepers are likely to have an increased ability and incentive to leverage their gatekeeper power from their core platform services to these ancillary services, to the detriment of choice and contestability of these services. Gatekeepers that provide ancillary services such as retailing or distribution activities that are targeted at end users alongside their core platform services and in a manner that is indistinguishable for the average user should also be subject to the obligations applicable to core platform services.
Amendment 105 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 31
Recital 31
(31) To ensure the effectiveness of the review of gatekeeper status as well as the possibility to adjust the list of core platform services provided by a gatekeeper, the gatekeepers should inform the Commission and other competent national authorities of all of their intended and concluded acquisitions of other providers of core platform services or any other services provided within the digital sector. Such information should not only serve the review process mentioned above, regarding the status of individual gatekeepers, but will also provide information that is crucial to monitoring broader contestability trends in the digital sector and can therefore be a useful factor for consideration in the context of the market investigations foreseen by this Regulation.
Amendment 107 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 32
Recital 32
(32) To safeguard the fairness and contestability of core platform services provided by gatekeepers, it is necessary to provide in a clear and unambiguous manner for a set of harmonised obligations with regard to those services. Such rules are needed to address the risk of harmful effects of unfair practices imposed by gatekeepers, to the benefit of the business environment in the services concerned, to the benefit of users and ultimately to the benefit of society as a whole. Given the fast-moving and dynamic nature of digital markets, and the substantial economic power of gatekeepers, it is important that these obligations are effectively applied without being circumvented. To that end, the obligations in question should apply to any practicesrelevant behaviour by a gatekeeper, irrespective of its form and irrespective of whether it is of a contractual, commercial, technical or any other nature, insofar as a practice corresponds to the type of practicebehaviour that is the subject of one of the obligations of this Regulation.
Amendment 110 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 36
Recital 36
(36) The conduct of combining end user data from different sources or signing in users to different services of gatekeepers gives them potential advantages in terms of accumulation of data, thereby raising barriers to entry. To ensure that gatekeepers do not unfairly undermine the contestability of core platform services, they should enable their end users to freely choose to opt-in to such business practices by offering a less personalised alternative. The possibility should cover all possible sources of personal data, including those created by the own services of the gatekeeper as well as third party websites, and should be proactively presented to the end user in an explicit, clear and straightforward manner.
Amendment 113 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 37
Recital 37
(37) Because of their position, gatekeepers might in certain cases restrict the ability of business users of their online intermediation services to offer their goods or services to end users under more favourable conditions, including price, through other online intermediation services or their own websites or other distribution channels. Such restrictions have a significant deterrent effect on the business users of gatekeepers in terms of their use of alternative online intermediation services, limiting inter- platform contestability, which in turn limits choice of alternative online intermediation channels for end users. To ensure that business users of online intermediation services of gatekeepers can freely choose alternative online intermediation services and differentiate the conditions under which they offer their products or services to their end users, it should not be acceppermitted that gatekeepers limit business users from choosing to differentiate commercial conditions, including price. Such a restriction should apply to any measure with equivalent effect, such as for example increased commission rates or de- listing or less favourable ranking of the offers of business users.
Amendment 115 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) refrain from combining personal data sourced from these core platform services with personal data from any other services offered by the gatekeeper or with personal data from third-party services, and from signing in end users to other services of the gatekeeper in order to combine personal data, unless the end user has been presented with the specific choice and provided consent in the sense of Regulation (EU) 2016/679. except when disclosing data to third parties commissioned by one or more professional users to perform independent traffic analytics with a view to ensuring market share transparency and safeguarding the general and/or public interests;
Amendment 119 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) refrain from directly or indirectly preventing or restricting business and end users from raising issues with any relevant public authority relating to any practice of gatekeepers, including by means of the reporting mechanism for professional and end users pursuant to Article 18a;
Amendment 120 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 39
Recital 39
(39) To safeguard a fair commercial environment and protect the contestability of the digital sector it is important to safeguard the right of business users to raise concerns about unfair behaviour by gatekeepers with any relevant administrative or other public authorities, including national courts. For example, business users may want to complain about different types of unfair practices, such as discriminatory access conditions, unjustified closing of business user accounts or unclear grounds for product de-listings. Any practice that would in any way inhibit or impede such a possibility of raising concerns or seeking available redress, for instance by means of confidentiality clauses in agreements or other written terms, should therefore be prohibited. This should be without prejudice to the right of business users and gatekeepers to lay down in their agreements the terms of use including the use of lawful complaints-handling mechanisms, including any use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms or of the jurisdiction of specific courts in compliance with respective Union and national law This should therefore also be without prejudice to the role gatekeepers play in the fight against illegal content online.
Amendment 122 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 41
Recital 41
(41) Gatekeepers should not restrict the free choice of end users by technically preventing switching between or subscription to different software applications and services. Gatekeepers should therefore ensure a free choice irrespective of whether they are the manufacturer of any hardware by means of which such software applications or services are accessed and should not raise artificialunjustified technical barriers so as to make switching more difficult, impossible or ineffective. The mere offering of a given product or service to end users, including by means of pre- installation, as well the improvement of end user offering, such as better prices or increased quality, would not in itself constitute a barrier to switching.
Amendment 128 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 43
Recital 43
(43) A gatekeeper may in certain circumstances have a dual role as a provider of core platform services whereby it provides a core platform service to its business users, while also competing with those same business users in the provision of the same or similar services or products to the same end users, including as part of an ancillary service. In these circumstances, a gatekeeper may take advantage of its dual role to use data, generated from transactions by its business users on the core platform or from transactions on its ancillary service, for the purpose of its own services or goods that offer similar services to that of its business users or of its suppliers. This may be the case, for instance, where a gatekeeper provides an online marketplace or app store to business users, and at the same time offer services as an online retailer or provider of application software against those business users or against its suppliers. To prevent gatekeepers from unfairly benefitting from their dual role, it should be ensured that they refrain from using any aggregated or non-aggregated data, which may include anonymised and personal data that is not publicly available to offer similar services to those of their business users. This obligation should apply to the gatekeeper as a whole, including but not limited to its business unit that competes with the business users of a core platform service.
Amendment 130 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 47
Recital 47
(47) The rules that the gatekeepers set for the distribution of software applications may in certain circumstances restrict the ability of end users to install and effectively use third party software applications or software application stores on operating systems or hardware of the relevant gatekeeper and restrict the ability of end users to access these software applications or software application stores outside the core platform services of that gatekeeper. Such restrictions may limit the ability of developers of software applications to use alternative distribution channels and the ability of end users to choose between different software applications from different distribution channels and should be prohibited as unfair and liable to weaken the contestability of core platform services. In order to ensure that third party software applications or software application stores do not endanger the integrity of the hardware or operating system provided by the gatekeeper the gatekeeper concerned may implement proportionate technical or contractual measures to achieve that goal if the gatekeeper demonstrates that such measures are necessary and justified and that there are no less restrictive means to safeguard the integrity of the hardware or operating system. This prohibition on restricting the ability of end users to install and use, or access third - party software applications or application stores should not prevent gatekeepers to take the required responsibility in the fight against illegal content online.
Amendment 131 #
(ga) refrain from communicating, or using for its own purposes, sensitive information obtained in the context of an advertising service, or from using it for any purpose other than the performance of the concluded service agreement, unless the gatekeeper and its client have agreed otherwise.
Amendment 133 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 48
Recital 48
(48) Gatekeepers are often vertically integrated and offer certain products or services to end users through their own core platform services, or through a business user over which they exercise control which frequently leads to conflicts of interest. This can include the situation whereby a gatekeeper offers its own online intermediation services through an online search engine. When offering those products or services on the core platform service, gatekeepers can reserve a better position to their own offering, in terms of ranking, as opposed to the products of third parties also operating onusing that core platform service. This can occur for instance with products or services, including other core platform services, which are ranked inwithin or along the results communicated by online search engines, or which are partly or entirely embedded in online search engines results, groups of results specialised in a certain topic, displayed along with the results of an online search engine, which armay be considered or used by certain end users as a service distinct or additional to the online search engine. Such preferential or embedded display of a separate online intermediation service shall be regarded as a favouring irrespective of whether the information or results within the favoured groups of specialised results may also be provided by competing services and are as such ranked in a non-discriminatory way. Other instances are those of software applications which are distributed through software application stores, or products or services that are given prominence and display in the newsfeed of a social network, or products or services ranked in search results or displayed on an online marketplace. In those circumstances, the gatekeeper is in a dual- role position as intermediary for third party providers and as direct provider of products or services of the gatekeeper potentially leading to a conflict of interest. Consequently, these gatekeepers have the ability to undermine directly the contestability for those products or services on these core platform services, to the detriment of business users which are not controlled by the gatekeeper.
Amendment 133 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) refrain from using, in competition with business users, any data not publicly available, which is generated through activities by those business users, including by the end users of these business users, of its core platform services or ancillary services or provided by those business users of its core platform services or by the end users of these business users via the core platform services or ancillary services;
Amendment 135 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) allowinform end users to un-installupon first use of any pre-installed software applications on its core platform service and of the option to un-install them, without prejudice to the possibility for a gatekeeper to restrict such un-installation in relation to software applications that are essential for the functioning of the operating system or of the device and which cannot technically be offered on a standalone basis by third- parties;
Amendment 139 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) refrain from treating more favourably in rankingor differently in terms of ranking, access or terms of service, or technical features and interfaces, services and products offered by the gatekeeper itself or by any third party belonging to the same undertaking compared to similar services or products of thirdany other party and apply fair and non-discriminatory conditions to such rankingin terms of ranking, access or terms of service, and technical features and interfaces;
Amendment 141 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d a (new)
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d a (new)
(da) have its online search engine, online social networking or intermediation service display its own advertisements or services following an end user query only if the search results are relevant, and inform the end user, by means of an explicit and easily identifiable statement to that effect, that the search result relates to an advertisement or service belonging to the gatekeeper itself;
Amendment 142 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point e
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point e
(e) refrain from technically restricting the ability of end users to switch between and subscribe to different software applications andcontent or services to be accessed using the operating systemcore platform service of the gatekeeper, including as regards the choice of Internet access provider for end users, or the use of a vocal assistant;
Amendment 146 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 57
Recital 57
(57) In particular gGatekeepers which provide access to software application storcore platform services serve as an important gateway for business users that seek to reach end users. In view of the imbalance in bargaining power between those gatekeepers and business users of their software application storcore platform services, those gatekeepers should not be allowed to impose general conditions, including pricing conditions, data usage conditions or conditions related to the licensing of rights held by the business user that would be unfair or lead to unjustified differentiation. Pricing or other general access or treatment conditions should be considered unfair if they lead to an imbalance of rights and obligations imposed on business users or confer an advantage on the gatekeeper which is disproportionate to the service provided by the gatekeeper to business users or lead to a disadvantage for business users in providing the same or similar services as the gatekeeper. The following benchmarks can serve as a yardstick to determine the fairness of general access or treatment conditions: prices charged or conditions imposed for the same or similar services by other providers of software application storcore platform services; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application storecore platform services for different related or similar services or to different types of end users; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application storecore platform services for the same service in different geographic regions; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application storecore platform services for the same service the gatekeeper offers to itself. This obligation should not establish an access right and it should be without prejudice to the ability of providers of software application storcore platform services to take the required responsibility in the fight against illegal and unwanted content as set out in Regulation [Digital Services Act].
Amendment 147 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 9
Recital 9
(9) A fragmentNothing in this Regulation precludes Member States from imposing the same, stricter or different obligations of the internal market can only be effectively averted if Member States are prevented from applying national rules which are specific to the typen undertakings in order to pursue legitimate public interests, in compliance with Union law. Those legitimate public interests can be, among others, the protection of consumers, the fight against acts of unfair competition and the protection of media freedom and pluralism. In particular, nothing in this Regulation precludes Member States from pursuing those legitimate interests by imposing obligations ofn undertakings and services covered by this Regulation. At the same time, shaving a status of gatekeeper within the meaning of this Regulation as well as other undertakings. Since this Regulation aims at complementing the enforcement of competition law, it should be specified that this Regulation is without prejudice to Articles 101 and 102 TFEU, to the corresponding national competition rules and to other national competition rules regarding unilateral behaviour that are based on an individualised assessment of market positions and behaviour, including its likely effects and the precise scope of the prohibited behaviour, and which provide for the possibility of undertakings to make efficiency and objective justification arguments for the behaviour in question. However, the application of the latter rules should not affect the obligations imposed on gatekeepers under this Regulation and their uniform and effective application in the internal market.
Amendment 149 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point g
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point g
(g) provide advertisers and publishers, or third parties authorised by the advertisers and publishers, upon their request and free of charge, with access to the performance measuring tools of the gatekeeper and the information necessary for advertisers and publishers to carry out their own independent verification of the ad inventory;
Amendment 153 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 11
Recital 11
(11) This Regulation should also complement, without prejudice to their application, the rules resulting from other acts of Union law regulating certain aspects of the provision of services covered by this Regulation, in particular Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 of the European Parliament and of the Council26 , Regulation (EU) xx/xx/EU [DSA] of the European Parliament and of the Council27 , Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council28 , Directive (EU) 2019/790 of the European Parliament and of the Council29 , Directive (EU) 2015/2366 of the European Parliament and of the Council30 , and Directive (EU) 2010/13 of the European Parliament and of the Council31 , as well as national rules aimed at enforcing or, as the case may be, implementing that Union legislation. _________________ 26 Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 on promoting fairness and transparency for business users of online intermediation services (OJ L 186, 11.7.2019, p. 57). 27Regulation (EU) …/.. of the European Parliament and of the Council – proposal on a Single Market For Digital Services (Digital Services Act) and amending Directive 2000/31/EC. 28Regulation (EU) 2016/679 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 April 2016 on the protection of natural persons with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, and repealing Directive 95/46/EC (General Data Protection Regulation) (OJ L 119, 4.5.2016, p. 1). 29Directive (EU) 2019/790 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 April 2019 on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market and amending Directives 96/9/EC and 2001/29/ (OJ L 130, 17.5.2019, p. 92.). 30Directive (EU) 2015/2366 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 25 November 2015 on payment services in the internal market, amending Directives 2002/65/EC, 2009/110/EC and 2013/36/EU and Regulation (EU) No 1093/2010, and repealing Directive 2007/64/EC ( OJ L 337, 23.12.2015, p. 35). 31Directive 2010/13/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 March 2010 on the coordination of certain provisions laid down by law, regulation or administrative action in Member States concerning the provision of audiovisual media services (Audiovisual Media Services Directive) (OJ L 95, 15.4.2010, p. 1)taken in accordance with that Union legislation.
Amendment 153 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point h
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point h
(h) provide effective portability of data provided or generated through the activity of a business user or end user and shall, in particular, provide tools, foree of charge, to business users and end users to facilitate the exercise of data portability, in line with Regulation EU 2016/679, including by the provision of continuous and real-time access ;
Amendment 159 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) In particular, online intermediation services, (including, among others, marketplaces, app stores, digital voice assistants), online search engines, operating systems, online social networking, video sharing platform services, number- independent interpersonal communication services, cloud computing services and online advertising services all have the capacity to affect a large number of end users and businesses alike, which entails a risk of unfair business practices. They therefore should be included in the definition of core platform services and fall into the scope of this Regulation. Online intermediation services may also be active in the field of financial services, and they may intermediate or be used to provide such services as listed non-exhaustively in Annex II to Directive (EU) 2015/1535 of the European Parliament and of the Council32 . In certain circumstances, the notion of end users should encompass users that are traditionally considered business users, but in a given situation do not use the core platform services to provide goods or services to other end users, such as for example businesses relying on cloud computing services for their own purposes. For marketplaces, an active end user is a user who has completed at least one commercial transaction each month. _________________ 32Directive (EU) 2015/1535 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 September 2015 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical regulations and of rules on Information Society services, OJ L 241, 17.9.2015, p. 1.
Amendment 160 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point i
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point i
(i) provide business users, or third parties authorised by a business user, free of charge, with effective, high-quality, continuous and real-time access and use of aggregated or non-aggregated data, that is provided for or generated in the context of the use of the relevant core platform servicesor ancillary services offered by the gatekeeper by those business users and the end users engaging with the products or services provided by those business users; for personal data, provide access and use only where directly connected with the use effectuated by the end user in respect of the products or services offered by the relevant business user through the relevant core platform service, and when the end user opts in to such sharing with a consent in the sense of the Regulation (EU) 2016/679; ;
Amendment 161 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 13
Recital 13
(13) In particular, online intermediation services, online search engines, operating systems (which include digital voice assistants and connected TVs), online social networking, video sharing platform services, number- independent interpersonal communication services, cloud computing services, web browsers and online advertising services all have the capacity to affect a large number of end users and businesses alike, which entails a risk of unfair business practices. They therefore should be included in the definition of core platform services and fall into the scope of this Regulation. Online intermediation services may also be active in the field of financial services, and they may intermediate or be used to provide such services as listed non-exhaustively in Annex II to Directive (EU) 2015/1535 of the European Parliament and of the Council32 . In certain circumstances, the notion of end users should encompass users that are traditionally considered business users, but in a given situation do not use the core platform services to provide goods or services to other end users, such as for example businesses relying on cloud computing services for their own purposes. _________________ 32Directive (EU) 2015/1535 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 September 2015 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical regulations and of rules on Information Society services, OJ L 241, 17.9.2015, p. 1.
Amendment 166 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14 a (new)
Recital 14 a (new)
(14 a) Gatekeepers may also provide other ancillary services, for instance retailing or distribution activities, that are targeted at end users alongside their core platform services and in a manner that is indistinguishable for the average user. Such ancillary services can compete with business users of the core platform service and contribute significantly to the imbalance in a given market and ultimately increase unfairly the gatekeeper’s power, including in relation to the gatekeeper’s business partners, such as suppliers of goods or services, relying on such ancillary service. To prevent gatekeepers from unfairly benefiting from the leverage provided by provision of parallel services, such ancillary services should also be subject to the obligations applicable to core platform services.
Amendment 167 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14 b (new)
Recital 14 b (new)
(14 b) The impact of gatekeepers on the market makes their business partners, whether business users or suppliers of ancillary services, highly vulnerable to unfair terms and conditions of the gatekeepers they rely on. As such, gatekeeper should ensure that their terms and conditions are transparent and fair. While appropriate and proportionate sanctions in case of in breach of such terms and conditions should be allowed, they should be formally justified and allow for the sanctioned party to contest them. For this purpose, gatekeepers should provide for an internal system for handling swiftly the complaints of their business users and suppliers of ancillary services, including in their national language if the gatekeeper’s service actively targets the Member State concerned.
Amendment 168 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point k
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point k
(k) apply fair and non-discriminatory general conditions of access forand treatment to business users of its core platform service, in particular to business users tof its software application store, search engine, online payment service or online social networking service, designated pursuant to Article 3 of this Regulation.;
Amendment 188 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 14 – paragraph 1
Article 14 – paragraph 1
Amendment 191 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 a (new)
Article 16 a (new)
Amendment 192 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 17 – paragraph 1
Article 17 – paragraph 1
The Commission may conduct a market investigation with the purpose of examining whether one or more services within the digital sector should be added to the list of core platform services or to detect types of practices that may limit the contestability of core platform services or may be unfair and which are not effectively addressed by this Regulation. It shall issue a public report at the latest within 124 months from the opening of the market investigation.
Amendment 194 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 14
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 14
(14) ‘Ancillary service’ means services provided in the context of or together with core platform services, including retailing or distribution services, payment services as defined in point 3 of Article 4 and technical services which support the provision of payment services as defined in Article 3(j) of Directive (EU) 2015/2366, fulfilment, identification or advertising services;
Amendment 194 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 18 a (new)
Article 18 a (new)
Article 18a Reporting mechanism for professional and end users 1. Professional users, including competitors, and end users of the core platform services defined in Article 2(2) may, in a report, notify the Commission or a national competition authority of any practice or behaviour on the part of a gatekeeper that falls within the scope of this Regulation. The Commission shall grant the Member States access to these reports. 2. If the report pursuant to paragraph 1 is received by a national competition authority, it is forwarded directly to the Commission. 3. The Commission shall establish the conditions for submission of the reports referred to in paragraph 1. It shall also establish the conditions in which the Member States, in particular the national competition authorities, are notified of and given access to these reports. 4. The Commission shall have the power to set its priorities for examining the reports referred to paragraph 1. Subject to the provisions of paragraph 5 below and of Article 33, the Commission shall have the power to choose to not examine a report where it does not consider that report to be an enforcement priority. 5. When the Commission considers that a report is an enforcement priority, it may open proceedings pursuant to Article 18 or a market investigation pursuant to Article 14.
Amendment 205 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 31 a (new)
Article 31 a (new)
Article 31a Cooperation with the national competition authorities and their powers 1. The Commission shall ensure that the reports forwarded pursuant to Article 16b of this Regulation are made available to the national competition authorities within the European Competition Network, defined in Article 2(1)(5) of Directive (EU) 2019/1. 2. The Commission shall circulate within the European Competition Network the decisions relating to the opening of a market investigation pursuant to Article 14 or proceedings pursuant to Article 18. The national competition authorities may provide the Commission, on a voluntary basis, with any information deemed helpful and necessary for the purpose of the market investigation carried out pursuant to Articles 15, 16, 16a and 17, and provide the Commission with assistance, upon request, in implementing Articles 19, 20 and 21.
Amendment 208 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 1
Article 33 – paragraph 1
1. When three or more Member States request the Commission to open an investigation pursuant to Article 15 because they consider that there are reasonable grounds to suspect that a provider of core platform services should be designated as a gatekeeper4, the Commission shall within four months examine whether there are reasonable grounds to open such an investigation.
Amendment 210 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 36
Recital 36
(36) The conduct of combining end user data from different sources or signing in users to different services of gatekeepers gives them potential advantages in terms of accumulation of data, thereby raising barriers to entry. To ensure that gatekeepers do not unfairly undermine the contestability of core platform services, they should enable their end users to freely choose to opt-in to such business practices by offering a less personalised alternative. The possibility should cover all possible sources of personal data, including own services of the gatekeeper as well as third party websites, and should be proactively presented to the end user in an explicit, clear and straightforward mannerefrain from such behaviour.
Amendment 216 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 37
Recital 37
(37) Because of their position, gatekeepers might, in certain cases, through the imposition of contractual terms and conditions, restrict the ability of business users of their online intermediation services to offer their goods or services to end users under more favourable conditions, including price, through other online intermediation services or their own websites, other distribution channels or the direct online sales channels they own. Such restrictions have a significant deterrent effect on the business users of gatekeepers in terms of their use of alternative online intermediation servicedistribution channels, limiting inter-platform contestability, which in turn limits choice of alternative online intermediation channels for end users. To ensure that business users of online intermediation services of gatekeepers can freely choose alternative online intermediation services and differentiate the conditions under which they offer their products or services to their end users, it should not be accepted that gatekeepers limit business users from choosing to differentiate commercial conditions, including price. Such a restriction should apply to any measure with equivalent effect, such as for example increased commission rates or de-listing of the offers of business users.
Amendment 227 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 38
Recital 38
(38) To prevent further reinforcing their dependence on the core platform services of gatekeepers, the business users of these gatekeepers should be free in promoting and choosing the distribution channel they consider most appropriate to interact with any end users that these business users have already acquired through core platform services provided by the gatekeeper. Conversely, end users should also be free to choose offers of such business users and to enter into contracts with them either through core platform services of the gatekeeper, if applicable, or from a direct distribution channel of the business user or another indirect distribution channel such business user may use. This should apply to the promotion of offers and conclusion of contracts between business users and end users. Moreover, the ability of end users to freely acquire contentdigital content and services, subscriptions, features or other items outside the core platform services of the gatekeeper should not be undermined in any way or restricted, especially through the use of technical restrictions. In particular, it should be avoided that gatekeepers restrict end users from access to and use of such services via a software application running on their core platform service. For example, subscribers to online content purchased outside a software application download or purchased from a software application store should not be prevented from accessing such online content on a software application on the gatekeeper’s core platformlegally acquired digital content and services via hardware or software features that are used by that gatekeeper when providing a similar digital content or digital service, simply because it was purchased outside such software application or software application storthe gatekeeper’s core platform service.
Amendment 229 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 39
Recital 39
(39) To safeguard a fair commercial environment and protect the contestability of the digital sector it is important to safeguard the right of business users to raise concerns about unfair behaviour by gatekeepers with any relevant administrative or other public authoritieinstitutions. For example, business users may want to complain about different types of unfair practices, such as discriminatory access conditions, unjustified closing of business user accounts or unclear grounds for product de-listings. Any practice that would in any way inhibit or impede such a possibility of raising concerns or seeking available redress, for instance by means of confidentiality clauses in agreements or other written terms, should therefore be prohibited. This should be without prejudice to the right of business users and gatekeepers to lay down in their agreements the terms of use, drafted in plain and intelligible language, including the use of lawful complaints-handling mechanisms, including any use of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms orand including clear information ofn the jurisdiction of specific courts in compliance with respective Union and national law. This should therefore also be without prejudice to the role gatekeepers play in the fight against illegal content online.
Amendment 238 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 40
Recital 40
(40) Identification services areGatekeepers offer a range of ancillary services. To ensure contestability, it is crucial forthat business users to conduct their business, as these can allow them not only to optimise services, to the extent allowed under Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council33 , but also to inject trust in online transactions, in compliance with Union or national laware free to choose such ancillary services freely, without having to fear any detrimental effects for the provision of the core platform service. Gatekeepers should therefore not use their position as provider of core platform services to require their dependent business users to include any identificationuse, offer or include any ancillary services provided by the gatekeeper itself as part of the provision of services or products by these business users toor a particular their end usersd party , where other identificationancillary services are available to such business users. _________________ 33Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data andIn particular, gatekeepers shall not make their service dependent on business users including any identification service provided by the gatekeeper itself as part of the protectvision of privacy in the electronic communications sector (Directive on privacy and electronic communications) (OJ L 201, 31.7.2002, p. 37)services or products by these business users to their end users, where alternatives exist.
Amendment 240 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) allowrefrain from applying contractual obligations that prevent business users tofrom offering business users from offering the same products or services to end users themselves or through third party online intermediation services at prices or conditions that are different from those offered through the online intermediation services of the gatekeeper;
Amendment 243 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 41
Recital 41
(41) Gatekeepers should not restrict the free choice of end users by technically preventing switching between or subscription to different software applications and services. Gatekeepers should therefore ensure a free choice irrespective of whether they are the manufacturer of any hardware by means of which such software applications or services are accessed and should not raise artificial technical barriers so as to make switching impossiblemore difficult or ineffective. The mere offering of a given product or service to end users, including by means of pre- installation, as well the improvement of end user offering, such as better prices or increased quality, would not in itself constitute a barrier to switching.
Amendment 246 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 42
Recital 42
(42) The conditions under which gatekeepers provide online advertising services to business users including both advertisers and publishers are often non- transparent and opaque. This opacity is partly linked to the practices of a few platforms, but is also due to the sheer complexity of modern day programmatic advertising. The sector is considered to have become more non-transparent after the introduction of new privacy legislation, and is expected to become even more opaque with the announced removal of third-party cookiesunilateral decision making by industry actors that are not representative of the entire advertising value chain. This often leads to a lack of information and knowledge for advertisers and publishers about the conditions of the advertising services they purchased and undermines their ability to switch to alternative providers of online advertising services. Furthermore, the costs of online advertising are likely to be higher than they would be in a fairer, more transparent and contestable platform environment. These higher costs are likely to be reflected in the prices that end users pay for many daily products and services relying on the use of online advertising. Transparency obligations should therefore require gatekeepers to provide advertisers and publishers to whom they supply online advertising services, when requested and to the extent possiblith free of charge, effective, high-quality, continuous and real-time, with information that allows both sides to understand the price paid for each of the different advertising services provided as part of the relevant advertising value chain and the availability and visibility of advertisement.
Amendment 247 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) refrain from directly or indirectly preventing or restricting business users or supplier to the gatekeeper’s ancillary service from raising issues with any relevant public authority relating to any practice of gatekeepers;
Amendment 248 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 43
Recital 43
(43) A gatekeeper may in certain circumstances have a dual role as a provider of core platform services whereby it provides a core platform service to its business users, while also competing with those same business users in the provision of the same or similar services or products to the same end users, including as part of an ancillary service. In these circumstances, a gatekeeper may take advantage of its dual role to use data, generated from transactions by its business users on the core platform or from transactions on its ancillary service, for the purpose of its own services that offer similar services or goods to that of its business users or of its suppliers. This may be the case, for instance, where a gatekeeper provides an online marketplace or app store to business users, and at the same time offer services as an online retailer or provider of application software against those business users or against its suppliers. To prevent gatekeepers from unfairly benefitting from their dual role, it should be ensured that they refrain from using any aggregated or non-aggregated data, which may include anonymised and personal data that is not publicly available to offer similar services to those of their business users. This obligation should apply to the gatekeeper as a whole, including but not limited to its business unit that competes with the business users of a core platform service or with the supplier of an ancillary service.
Amendment 256 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 46
Recital 46
(46) A gatekeeper may use different means to favour its own services or products on its core platform service, to the detriment of the same or similar services that end users could obtain through third parties. This may for instance be the case where certain software applications or services are pre-installed by a gatekeeper. To enable end user choice, gatekeepers should not prevent end users from un- installing any pre-installed-install software applications o in its core platform service and thereby favour their own software applications.
Amendment 260 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 47
Recital 47
(47) The rules that the gatekeepers set for the distribution of software applications may in certain circumstances restrict the ability of end users to install and effectively use third party software applications or software application stores on operating systems or hardware of the relevant gatekeeper and restrict the ability of end users to access these software applications or software application stores outside the core platform services of that gatekeeper. Such restrictions may limit the ability of developers of software applications to use alternative distribution channels and the ability of end users to choose between different software applications from different distribution channels and should be prohibited as unfair and liable to weaken the contestability of core platform services. In order to ensure that third party software applications or software application stores do not endanger the integrity of the hardware or operating system provided by the gatekeeper the gatekeeper concerned may implement proportionate technical or contractual measures to achieve that goal if the gatekeeper demonstrates that such measures are necessary and justified and that there are no less restrictive means to safeguard the integrity of the hardware or operating system. This prohibition on restricting the ability of end users to install and use, or access, third-party software applications or application stores should therefore also be without prejudice to the ability of gatekeepers to take the required responsibility in the fight against illegal content online.
Amendment 268 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 48
Recital 48
(48) Gatekeepers are often vertically integrated and offer certain products or services to end users through their own core platform services, or through a business user over which they exercise control which frequently leads to conflicts of interest. This can include the situation whereby a gatekeeper offers its own online intermediation services through an online search engine. When offering those products or services on the core platform service, gatekeepers can reserve a better position to their own offering, in terms of ranking, as opposed to the products of third parties also operating onusing that core platform service. This can occur for instance with products or services, including other core platform services, which are ranked within or along in the results communicated by online search engines, or which are partly or entirely embedded in search results of online search engines results, groups of results specialised in a certain topic, displayed along with the results of an online search engine, which armay be considered or used by certain end users as a service distinct or additional to the online search engine. Such preferential or embedded display of a separate online intermediation service shall constitute a favouring irrespective of whether the information or results within the favoured groups of specialised results may also be provided by competing services and are as such ranked in anon- discriminatory way. Other instances are those of software applications which are distributed through software application stores, or products or services that are given prominence and display in the newsfeed of a social network, or products or services ranked in search results or displayed on an online marketplace. In those circumstances, the gatekeeper is in a dual- role position as intermediary for third party providers and as direct provider of products or services of the gatekeeper. Consequently, these gatekeepers have the ability to undermine directly the contestability for those products or services on these core platform services, to the detriment of business users which are not controlled by the gatekeeper.
Amendment 270 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point c
(c) allow and technically enable the installation and effective use of third party software applications or software application stores using, or interoperating with, operating systems of that gatekeeper and allow these software applications or software application stores to be accessed by means other than the core platform services of that gatekeeper. The gatekeeper shall not be prevented from taking proportionate measures to ensure that third party software applications or software application stores do not endanger the integrity of the hardware or operating system provided by the gatekeeper;
Amendment 271 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 48 a (new)
Recital 48 a (new)
(48 a) Gatekeepers often bury organic search results beneath search advertisements or other features promoting own services or products, or increase the prominence of own services and products or paid for or sponsored results by other means, for example by offering them more space, more pictures or other features not available to organic search results. As a result of this prevalence and prominence of paid-for or sponsored results and the gatekeeper’s own services and products, end users are deprived of the relevance-based organic results they intend to find. The gatekeeper should therefore ensure that organic search results are given the same prominence and prevalence as paid-for or sponsored results and as own products and services of the gatekeeper.
Amendment 274 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) refrain from treating more favourably in ranking services and products offered by the gatekeeper itself or by any third party belonging to the same undertaking compared to similar services or products of othirder partyies and apply fair and non-discriminatory conditions to such ranking;
Amendment 275 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 49
Recital 49
(49) In such situations, the gatekeeper should not engage in any form of differentiated or preferential treatment in ranking on the core platform service, whether through legal, commercial or technical means, in favour of products or services it offers itself or through a business user which it cooperates with controls. To ensure that this obligation is effective, it should also be ensured that the conditions that apply to such ranking are also generally fair and the gatekeeper's own products or services do not have more access to information about the ranking or any other competition-relevant aspects than products or services of third parties. Ranking should in this context cover all forms of relative prominence, including among others order, graphic display, rating, linking or voice results. To ensure that this obligation is effective and cannot be circumvented it should also apply to any measure that may have an equivalent effect to the differentiated or preferential treatment in ranking. Such an equivalent effect can for instance be achieved by ad formats that are used by users in a similar manner to the gatekeeper's or third parties' online intermediation services, or that benefit the gatekeeper in a similar manner to the preferential treatment in ranking itself (e.g., in terms of financial gains, user access/traffic or data access). The guidelines adopted pursuant to Article 5 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 should also facilitate the implementation and enforcement of this obligation.34 _________________ 34Commission Notice: Guidelines on ranking transparency pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 of the European Parliament and of the Council (OJ C 424, 8.12.2020, p. 1).
Amendment 280 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 50
Recital 50
(50) Gatekeepers can hamper the ability of end users to access online content and services including software applications. Therefore, rules should be established to ensure that the rights of end users to access an open internet are not compromised by the conduct of gatekeepers. In particular, Gatekeepers should not restrict or prevent the free choice of end users by technically preventing switching between or subscription to different software applications andonline content or services. This would allow more providers to offer their services, thereby ultimately providing greater choice to the end user. Gatekeepers should ensure a free choice irrespective of whether they are the manufacturer of any hardware by means of which such software applicationson the core platform service through which such online content or services are accessed and shall not raise artificial technical barriers so as to make switching impossible or ineffective. Gatekeepers can also technically limit the ability of end users to effectively switch between different Internet access service providers, in particular through their control over operating systems or hardware. This distorts the level playing field for Internet access services and ultimately harms end users. It should therefore be ensured that gatekeepers do not unduly restrict end users in choosing their Internet access service provider. The mere offering of a given product or service to consumers, including by means of pre- installation, as well as the improvement of the offering to end users, such as price reductions or increased quality, should not be construed as constituting a prohibited barrier to switching.
Amendment 286 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 51
Recital 51
Amendment 291 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point k
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point k
(k) apply fair and non-discriminatory general conditions of access and treatment for business users to its software application storcore platform services, in particular to its software application store, online search engine and to its online social networking service designated pursuant to Article 3 of this Regulation.
Amendment 299 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 2
Article 6 – paragraph 2
2. For the purposes of point (a) of paragraph 1 data that is not publicly available shall include any aggregated and non-aggregated data generated by business users or generated by goods and services provided by a supplier to the gatekeeper’s ancillary services notably distribution, that can be inferred from, or collected through, the commercial activities of business users or their customers on the core platform, distribution or other ancillary service of the gatekeeper.
Amendment 300 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 55
Recital 55
(55) Business users that use large core platform services provided by gatekeepers and end users of such business users provide and generate a vast amount of data, including data inferred from such use. In order to ensure that business users have access to the relevant data thus generated, the gatekeeper should, upon their request, allow unhindered access, free of charge, to such data. Such access should also be given to third parties contracted by the business user, who are acting as processors of this data for the business user. Data provided or generated by the same business users and the same end users of these business users in the context of other services provided by the same gatekeeper may be concerned where this is inextricably linked to the relevant request. To this end, a gatekeeper should not use any contractual or other restrictions to prevent business users from accessing relevant data and should enable business users to obtain consent of their end users for such data access and retrieval, where such consent is required under Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Directive 2002/58/EC. The obtaining of this consent should be as user-friendly as possible and under the same conditions, such as the duration and renewal of consent, as those applied to the consent provided by the end user to the gatekeeper for the use of such data for its own services. Gatekeepers should also facilitate access to these data in real time by means of appropriate technical measures, such as for example putting in place high quality application programming interfaces.
Amendment 304 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 57
Recital 57
(57) In particular gatekeepers which provide access to software application storeCore platform services offered by gatekeepers serve as an important gateway for business users that seek to reach end users. In view of the imbalance in bargaining power between those gatekeepers and business users of their software application stores, those gatekeepers should not be allowed to impose general conditions, including particular pricing conditions, that would be unfair or lead to unjustified differentiationdata usage conditions or conditions related to the licensing of rights held by the business user, that would be unfair or lead to unjustified differentiation. “Imposing” encompasses both explicit and implicit demands, by means of contract or fact, including, for example, an online search engine making the ranking results dependent on the transfer of certain rights or data. Pricing or other general access or treatment conditions should be considered unfair if they lead to an imbalance of rights and obligations imposed on business users or confer an advantage on the gatekeeper which is disproportionate to the service provided by the gatekeeper to business users or lead to a disadvantage for business users in providing the same or similar services as the gatekeeper. The following benchmarks can serve as a yardstick to determine the fairness of general access or treatment conditions: prices charged or conditions imposed for the same or similar services by other providers of software application storesthe relevant core platform service; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application storegatekeeper for different related or similar services or to different types of end users; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application storegatekeeper for the same service in different geographic regions; prices charged or conditions imposed by the provider of the software application store for the samgatekeeper for the same service the gatekeeper offers to itself. Furthermore, conditions shall be deemed unfair if the gatekeeper charges prices or imposes conditions without entering into genuine negotiations with business users or collective management organisations representing these business users or without accepting a binding procedure of price fixing like established mechanism under laws of collective rights management or without accepting a reasonable offer of a binding arbitration by the business users. It shall also be deemed unfair if a gatekeeper demands a royalty-free license as a condition to access or treatment, or enforces royalties that are significantly below prices fixed in accordance with laws of collective rights management. It shall also be deemed unfair if access to the service or the gatekeeper offers to itself. This obligation should not establish an access right and itquality or other conditions of the service are made dependent on the transfer of data or the granting of rights by the business user which are unrelated to or not strictly necessary for providing the core platform service. While this obligation should not establish an unconditional access right, it shall ensure that the conditions of access to and treatment by the core platforms are fair and non-discriminatory. This obligation should be without prejudice to the ability of providers of software application storcore platform services to take the required responsibility in the fight against illegal and unwanted content as set out in Regulation [Digital Services Act].
Amendment 312 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 57 a (new)
Recital 57 a (new)
(57 a) Abuse of an essential platform service is when the gatekeeper strengthens its position on the service in question or relies on its position to create another essential platform service using means that a company would not be able to use if competition played its role normally.
Amendment 324 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 12 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
Article 12 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
1. A gatekeeper shall inform the Commission and competent national authorities of any intended concentration within the meaning of Article 3 of Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 involving another provider of core platform services or of any other services provided in the digital sector irrespective of whether it is notifiable to a Union competition authority under Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 or to a competent national competition authority under national merger rules.
Amendment 396 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 5
Article 1 – paragraph 5
5. Member States shall not impose on gatekeepers further obligations by way of laws, regulations or administrative action for the purpose of ensuring contestable and fair markets. This is without prejudice toshall not affect rules pursuing other legitimate public interests, in compliance with Union law. In particular, nothing in this Regulation precludes Member States from imposing obligations, which are compatible with Union law, on undertakings, including providers of core platform services where these obligations are unrelated to the relevant undertakings having a status of gatekeeper within the meaning of this Regulation in order to protect consumers or to fight against acts of unfair competition, in order to pursue legitimate public interests.
Amendment 401 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 6
Article 1 – paragraph 6
6. This Regulation is without prejudice to the application of Articles 101 and 102 TFEU. It is also without prejudice to the application of: national rules prohibiting anticompetitive agreements, decisions by associations of undertakings, concerted practices and abuses of dominant positions; national competition rules prohibiting other forms of unilateral conduct insofar as they are applied to undertakings other than gatekeepersse rules are unrelated to the relevant undertakings having a status of gatekeeper within the meaning of this regulation or amount to imposing additional obligations on gatekeepers; Council Regulation (EC) No 139/200438 and national rules concerning merger control; Regulation (EU) 2019/1150 and Regulation (EU) …./.. of the European Parliament and of the Council39 . In particular, nothing in this Regulation precludes Member States from imposing obligations on undertakings other than gatekeepers or additional obligations on gatekeepers. _________________ 38Council Regulation (EC) No 139/2004 of 20 January 2004 on the control of concentrations between undertakings (the EC Merger Regulation) (OJ L 24, 29.1.2004, p. 1). 39Regulation (EU) …/.. of the European Parliament and of the Council – proposal on a Single Market For Digital Services (Digital Services Act) and amending Directive 2000/31/EC.
Amendment 414 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point a
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point a
(a) online intermediation services;, including digital voice assistants.
Amendment 420 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point f a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point f a (new)
(f a) digital voice assistants
Amendment 421 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point f b (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point f b (new)
(f b) web browser
Amendment 425 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point h
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point h
(h) advertising services, including any advertising networks, advertising exchanges and any other advertising intermediation services, provided by a provider where the undertaking to which it belongs is also a provider of any of the core platform services listed in points (a) to (g);
Amendment 431 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point h a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 2 – point h a (new)
(h a) web browsers;
Amendment 444 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 5
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 5
(5) ‘Online intermediation services’ means services as defined in point 2 of Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2019/1150; and which organize a direct connection between the user companies and the end users;
Amendment 451 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10
(10) ‘Operating system’ means a system software which controls the basic functions of theany hardware that is capable of being connected to the Internet or software andthat enables software applications to run on it, including for static and mobile devices, televisions or wearables;
Amendment 453 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10 a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10 a (new)
(10 a) ‘Web browsers’ are software used by users of client PCs, smart mobile devices and other devices to access and interact with web content hosted on servers that are connected to networks such as the Internet, including standalone web browsers as well as web browsers integrated or embedded in software or similar;
Amendment 455 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10 a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10 a (new)
(10 a) ‘Digital voice assistant’ means a software application that provides capabilities for oral dialogue with a user in natural language and which intermediates between end users and business users offering voice-based apps;
Amendment 458 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10 b (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 10 b (new)
(10 b) ‘web browser’ means a software application used by users to access and interact with World Wide Web content hosted on servers which are connected to networks such as the internet;
Amendment 469 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 14
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 14
(14) ‘Ancillary service’ means services provided in the context of or together with core platform services, including retailing activities, payment services as defined in point 3 of Article 4 and technical services which support the provision of payment services as defined in Article 3(j) of Directive (EU) 2015/2366, fulfilment, identification or advertising services;
Amendment 473 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18
(18) ‘Ranking’ means the relative prominence given to goods or services offered through online intermediation services or online social networking services, or the relevance given to search results by online search engines, as presented, organised or communicated by the providers of online intermediation services or of online social networking services or by providers of online search engincore platform services, respectively, whatever the technological means used for such presentation, organisation or communication;.
Amendment 474 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18
(18) ‘Ranking’ means the relative prominence given to goods or services offered or provided through online intermediation services, video-sharing platform services, operating system, web browser or online social networking services, or the relevance given to search results by online search engines, as presented, organised or communicated by the providers of online intermediation services, video-sharing platform services, operating system, web browser or of online social networking services or by providers of online search engines, respectively, whatever the technological means used for such presentation, organisation or communication;
Amendment 480 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18 a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18 a (new)
(18 a) ‘Search results’ is any information in any format, including texts, graphics, voice or other output, returned in response and related to a written or oral search query, irrespective of whether the information is an organic result, a paid result, a direct answer or any product, service or information offered in connection with, or displayed along with, or partly or entirely embedded in, the organic results;
Amendment 483 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18 b (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 18 b (new)
(18 b) ‘Organic results’ are ‘search results’ that are solely based upon the relevance of the information to the end user and allow the end user to access the corresponding information directly;
Amendment 486 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 23 a (new)
Article 2 – paragraph 1 – point 23 a (new)
(23 a) ‘interoperability’ means the ability of the digital content or digital service, legally acquired, within a given ecosystem, to function with hardware or software ecosystems different from the one in which the digital content or digital service was originally provided, including the ability to access the digital content or digital service without having to use an application software or other technologies for conversion;
Amendment 504 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point a
(a) the requirement in paragraph 1 point (a) where the undertaking to which it belongs achieves an annual EEA turnover equal to or above EUR 6.5 billion in the last threewo financial years, or where the average market capitalisation or the equivalent fair market value of the undertaking to which it belongs amounted to at least EUR 65 billion in the last financial year, and it provides a core platform service in at least three Member States;
Amendment 512 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b – paragraph 1
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point b – paragraph 1
for the purpose of the first subparagraph, monthly active end users shall refer to the average number of monthly active end users throughout the largest partat least six (not necessarily consecutive) months of the last financial year;
Amendment 523 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 3 – introductory part
Article 3 – paragraph 3 – introductory part
3. Where a provider of core platform services meets all the thresholds in paragraph 2, it shall notify the Commission thereof within threone months after those thresholds are satisfied and provide it with the relevant information identified in paragraph 2.. That notification shall include the relevant information identified in paragraph 2 for each of the core platform services of the provider that meets the thresholds in paragraph 2 point (b). The notification shall be updated whenever other core platform services individually meet the thresholds in paragraph 2 point (b). In view of market transparency, the Commission may require that the reported information in application of paragraph 2 point b is verified by third party audience measurement providers qualified to provide such services in accordance with market standards and codes of conduct applicable in the European Union.
Amendment 598 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) refrain from combining personal data sourced from these core platform services with personal data from any other services offered by the gatekeeper or with personal data from third-party services, and from signing in end users to other services of the gatekeeper in order to combine personal data, unless the end user has been presented with the specific choice and provided consent in the sense of Regulation (EU) 2016/679 without prejudice to the disclosure of data to third parties that have been mandated by one or several business users to provide independent audience measurement in view of ensuring transparency over market shares and to uphold prevailing general and/or public interests and in accordance with the special rules and exemptions provided for these purposes. ;
Amendment 610 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) allow business users torefrain from applying contractual obligations that prevent business users and suppliers from offering the same products or services to end users through third party online intermediation services at prices or conor the direct online sales channels they own at prices or conditions that are more favorable than those offered by the gatekeeper's online intermediation services and to offer the same products or services directly, without going through online intermediations that are different from those offered through the services, at more favorable prices or conditions than those offered by the gatekeeper's online intermediation services ofr the gatekeeperird parties;
Amendment 633 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) refrain from directly or indirectly preventing or restricting business users or supplier to the gatekeeper’s ancillary service from raising issues with any relevant public authority or national court relating to any practice of gatekeepers;
Amendment 646 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point e
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point e
(e) refrain from requiring business users and suppliers to use, offer or interoperate with an identification service of the gatekeeper in the context of services offered by the business users using the core platform services of that gatekeeper or its other services;
Amendment 655 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point e
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point e
(e) refrain from requiring business users to use, offer or interoperate with an identification servicey ancillary of the gatekeeper in the context of services offered by the business users using the core platform services of that gatekeeper;
Amendment 659 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point f
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point f
(f) refrain from requiring business users or end users to subscribe to or register with any other core platform services identified pursuant to Article 3 or which meets the thresholds in Article 3(2)(b), or its other services, as a condition to access, sign up or register to any of their core platform services identified pursuant to that Article or to any other service offered by the gatekeeper;
Amendment 667 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point f a (new)
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point f a (new)
(f a) A platform must refrain from requiring ‘the acceptance of supplementary conditions or services that, by their nature or according to commercial usage, have no connection with and are not necessary for the provision of the platform or services to its business users’.
Amendment 682 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point g a (new)
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point g a (new)
Amendment 689 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point g a (new)
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point g a (new)
(g a) Refrain from disclosing any commercially sensitive information obtained in connection with one of its advertising services to any third party belonging to the same undertaking and from using such commercially sensitive information for any purposes other than the provision of the specific advertising service unless this is necessary for carrying out a business transaction.
Amendment 702 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point g b (new)
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point g b (new)
(g b) allow Business Users or End Users to annually renew their consent to enroll or register for any of its essential platform services identified under section 3 and its other services, and in the absence of consent, promptly delete all Business User or End User data.
Amendment 710 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) refrain from using, in competition with business users and ancillary service (notably distribution) suppliers, any data not n-publicly available, which is generated through activities by those business users, or suppliers, or their competitors, including by the end users of these business users or their competitors, of its core platform services or provided by those business users, of its core platform servicer suppliers, or their competitors or by the end users of these business users or their competitors;
Amendment 720 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) allow end users to un-install any pre-installed software applications on its core platform service without prejudice to the possibility for a gatekeeper to restrict such un-installation in relation torefrains from pre-installing any software applications that arein its essential for the functioning of the operating system or of the device and which cannot technically be offered on a standalone basis by third-partiesplatform services ;
Amendment 730 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point c
(c) allow and technically enable the installation and effective use and interoperability of third party software applications or software application stores using, or interoperating with, operating systems of that gatekeeper and allow and enable these software applications or software application stores or services to be accessed by means other than the core platform services of that gatekeeper. The gatekeeper shall not be prevented from taking proportionate measures to ensure that third party software applications or software application stores or services do not endanger the integrity of the hardware or operating system provided by the gatekeeper. This should be without prejudice to the role gatekeepers play in the fight against illegal content online;
Amendment 744 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d
(d) refrain from treating more favourably in ranking and other settings, as well as in access to and conditions for the use of services, functionalities or technical interfaces, services and products offered by the gatekeeper itself or by any third party belonging to the same undertaking compared to similar services or products of othirder partyies, and apply fair and non-discriminatory conditions to such pranking;ctices.
Amendment 755 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d a (new)
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d a (new)
(d a) refrain from displaying, in its online search engine, online social networking service or online intermediation service, in response to an end user query, advertising (including paid-for search results) or own services of the gatekeeper if the space occupied by such advertising or own services exceeds in total 25% of the initial result screen visible on the end user’s terminal (mobile, tablet, desktop or other);
Amendment 759 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d b (new)
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point d b (new)
(d b) refrain from treating more favourably in ranking advertising compared to organic results;
Amendment 760 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point e
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point e
(e) refrain from technically restricting the ability of end users to switch between and subscribe to different software applications and services to be accessed using the operating system of the gatekeeper, including as regards the choice of Internet access provider for end usersonline content or services to be accessed using the core plateform service of the gatekeeper, including as regards the choice of Internet access provider for end users. In connection with the protection of end- users' terminal equipment during the use of the operating system of the gatekeeper, the gatekeeper shall ensure that consent directly expressed by an end-user to a service provider prevails over software settings. Any consent requested and given by an end-user to a service shall be directly implemented, without any further delay, by the applications of the end user’s terminal equipment. The same shall apply if the storage of information or the access of information already stored in the end-user’s terminal equipment is permitted in any other legal basis than consent;
Amendment 768 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point f
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point f
(f) allow business users and providers of ancillary services access to and interoperability with the same operating system, hardware or software features that are available or used in the provision by the gatekeeper of any core platform or ancillary services. Allow the supply of content exclusively in an open format upon content suppliers’ request. Allow the proper functioning of technological protection measures (TPMs) in cases these are used to manage the rights of the user. However the gatekeeper should ensure that TPMs linked to a file are not solely compliant with a single reading environment. In this case, other suppliers of files and reading service providers should have the possibility to require gatekeepers to provide the information that is necessary for the purpose of interoperability;
Amendment 779 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point f a (new)
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point f a (new)
(f a) Allow end users of technologically protected digital content or digital service, legally acquired through third party services, access to and interoperability with the hardware or software features that are used by that gatekeeper when providing a similar technologically protected digital content or digital service; and allow end users of technologically protected digital content or digital service acquired through that gatekeeper access to and interoperability with the hardware or software features that are used by third party when providing a similar technologically protected digital content or digital service. Gatekeepers’ suppliers, as well as third-party hardware providers should have the possibility to require gatekeepers to provide the necessary interoperability information to comply with the purpose of this Regulation;
Amendment 784 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point g
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point g
(g) provide advertisers and publishers, upon their request and free of charge, with access to the performance measuring tools of the gatekeeper and, the information necessary for advertisers and publishers to carry out their own independent verification of the ad inventory; and continuous and real-time access via high- quality application programming interfaces to the data necessary for advertisers and publishers to run their own or third-party verification and measurement tools to measure the performance of the gatekeeper’s intermediation services and the performance of an ad;
Amendment 792 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point h
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point h
(h) provide effective portability of data provided for or generated through or in the context of the activity of a business user, or end user and shall, in particular, provide tools forgenerated by goods and services provided by a supplier to the gatekeeper’s ancillary service notably distribution or an end user and shall, in particular, provide free of charge tools for business users and end users to facilitate the exercise of data portability, in line with Regulation (EU )2016/679, including by the provision of continuous and real-time access and guarantees their interoperability ;
Amendment 797 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point i
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point i
(i) provide business users, or third- parties authoriszed by a business user, free of charge, with effective, high- quality, continuous and real-time access and use of aggregated or non-aggregated data, that is provided for or generated in the context of the use of the relevant core and ancillary platform services by those business users and the end users engaging with the products or services provided by those business users; for personal data, provide access and use only where directly connected with the use effectuated by the end user in respect of the products or services offered by the relevant business user through the relevant core platform service, and when the end user opts in to such sharing with a consent in the sense of the Regulation (EU) 2016/679; and services provided by those business users, to user businesses and supplier to the gatekeeper’s ancillary service and notably distribution services; or a provider of a core platform service and a business user or several business users jointly, may appoint a qualified third party or a qualified organization to receive the continuous and real time access to the non-aggregated data in order to provide audience measurement for the relevant business user(s) on a given market for personal data, provide access and use only where directly connected with the use effectuated by the end user in respect of the products or services offered by the relevant business user through the relevant core platform service, and when the end user opts in to such sharing with a consent provided to the gatekeeper or directly to the business user as prescribed in Article 11 (2) or where the business user may rely on Article 6(1)c or Article 6(1)e in the sense of the (EU) 2016/679 or the consent requirement in this provision is without prejudice to the special rules and exemptions provided for the purpose of audience measurement for the functioning of the market and for prevailing general and/or public interest.;
Amendment 811 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point k
Article 6 – paragraph 1 – point k
(k) apply fair and non-discriminatory general conditions of access for business users to its software application store designated pursuant to Article 3 of this Regulationand treatment for business users to its core platform service, in particular to its software application store, its online search engine and to its online social networking service designated pursuant to Article 3 of this Regulation, but also reasonable costs ; (l) refrains from abuse of essential platform services. (m) apply fair and non-discriminatory treatment to business users. (n) In the event of a dispute about the fairness of a price or remuneration as condition of access for business users to each of its core platform services identified pursuant to Article 3(7), the gatekeeper shall participate in and adhere to the outcome of a binding procedure for fixing a fair price or remuneration, be such a procedure established by law or be such a procedure proposed by the business users or by organisations or rights management organisation representing such business users. The procedure about the issue of remuneration and price should start, if the parties have not reached an agreement about terms for resolving the issue of remuneration and pricing within [3 months after one party has asked to start a negotiation or about one party’s refusal to negotiate]. This procedure shall apply in particular in the case of a dispute about the remuneration for the use of content protected by the press publisher right in Directive (EU) 2019/790.
Amendment 834 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 2
Article 6 – paragraph 2
2. For the purposes of point (a) of paragraph 1, data that is not publicly available shall include any aggregated and non-aggregated data generated by business users or generated by goods and services provided by a supplier to the gatekeeper’s ancillary services notably distribution, that can be inferred from, or collected through, the commercial activities of business users or their customers on the core platform, distribution or other ancillary service of the gatekeeper.
Amendment 940 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 11 – paragraph 2
Article 11 – paragraph 2
2. Where consent for collecting and processing of personal data is required to ensure compliance with this Regulation, a gatekeeper shall take the necessary steps to either enable business users to directly obtain at the level of their own services or products the required consent to their processing, where required under Regulation (EU) 2016/679 and Directive 2002/58/EC, or to comply with Union data protection and privacy rules and principles . The gatekeeper shall not make the obtaining other ways including by providing business users with duly anonymised data where appropriate. The gatekeeper shall not make the obtaining of this consent by the business user more burdensome than for its own servicesf this consent by the business user more burdensome than for its own services. In case consent is directly expressed by the end-user at the level of the services offered by the business user through the relevant core platform service, it shall prevail over any consent provided at the gatekeeper level.
Amendment 981 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 15 – paragraph 1
Article 15 – paragraph 1
1. The Commission mayust conduct a market investigation for the purpose of examining whether a provider of core platform services should be designated as a gatekeeper pursuant to Article 3(6), or in order to identify core platform services for a gatekeeper pursuant to Article 3(7). It shall endeavour to conclude its investigation by adopting a decision in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 32(4) within twelve months from the opening of the market investigation.
Amendment 1000 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 15 – paragraph 4
Article 15 – paragraph 4
4. When the Commission pursuant to Article 3(6) designates as a gatekeeper a provider of core platform services that does not yet enjoy an entrenched and durable position in its operations, but it is foreseeable that it will enjoy such a position in the near future, it shall declare applicable to that gatekeeper only obligations laid down in Article 5(b) and Article 6(1) points (e), (f), (h) and (i) as specified in the designation decision. The Commission shall only declare applicable those obligations that are appropriate and necessary to prevent that the gatekeeper concerned achieves by unfair means an entrenched and durable position in its operations. The Commission shall review such a designation in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 4.
Amendment 1013 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 – paragraph 1
Article 16 – paragraph 1
1. Where the market investigation shows that a gatekeeper has systematically infringed the obligations laid down in Articles 5 and 6 and has further strengthened or extended its gatekeeper position in relation to the characteristics under Article 3(1), the Commission may by decision adopted in accordance with the advisory procedure referred to in Article 32(4) impose on such gatekeeper any behavioural or structural remedies which are proportionate to the infringement committed and necessary to ensure compliance with this Regulation. The Commission shall conclude its investigation by adopting a decision within twelvesix months from the opening of the market investigation.
Amendment 1020 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 – paragraph 3
Article 16 – paragraph 3
3. A gatekeeper shall be deemed to have engaged in a systematic non- compliance with the obligations laid down in Articles 5 and 6, where the Commission has issued at least threone non-compliance or fining decisions pursuant to Articles 25 and 26 respectively against a gatekeeper in relation to any of its core platform services within a period of five years prior to the adoption of the decision opening a market investigation in view of the possible adoption of a decision pursuant to this Article.
Amendment 1030 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16 – paragraph 5
Article 16 – paragraph 5
5. The Commission shall communicate its objections to the gatekeeper concerned within sixthree months from the opening of the investigation. In its objections, the Commission shall explain whether it preliminarily considers that the conditions of paragraph 1 are met and which remedy or remedies it preliminarily considers necessary and proportionate.
Amendment 1148 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 32 – paragraph 4
Article 32 – paragraph 4
4. Where reference is made to this paragraph, Article 4 of Regulation (EU) No 182/2011 shall apply. 5. The Commission shall consult with the Advisory Committee before making a decision under this by-law. 6. The consultation may take place at a meeting convened and chaired by the Commission, which shall be held not earlier than fourteen days after the notice of the meeting is sent, together with a statement of the case, an indication of the most important documents and a preliminary draft decision. Where the Commission sends the notice of a meeting within less than fourteen days, the meeting may take place on the proposed date if no Member State raises an objection. The Advisory Committee shall deliver a written opinion on the Commission's preliminary draft decision. It may issue an opinion even if members are absent and not represented. At the request of one or more members, the positions expressed in the opinion shall be substantiated. 7. The consultation may also be carried out by means of a written procedure. However, the Commission shall organize a meeting if a Member State so requests. Where the written procedure is used, the Commission shall set a time limit of at least 14 days for Member States to submit their comments and forward them to all other Member States. Where the Commission sets a time limit for the written procedure of less than 14 days, the proposed time limit shall apply if no Member State raises an objection. 8. The Commission shall take the utmost account of the opinion of the Advisory Committee. It shall inform the Advisory Committee of the manner in which it has taken account of its opinion. 9. If the opinion of the Advisory Committee is in writing, it shall be attached to the draft decision. If the Advisory Committee recommends publication, the Commission shall proceed with such publication taking into account the legitimate interest of the enterprises in the protection of their business secrets. 10. At the request of an authority of a Member State, the Commission shall place on the agenda of the Advisory Committee cases which are dealt with by a national authority under the Regulation. The Commission may also make such an entry on its own initiative. In both cases, the Commission shall inform the national authority concerned. An authority of a Member State may in particular submit a request concerning a case in which the Commission intends to initiate proceedings under this Regulation. The Advisory Committee shall not give opinions on cases dealt with by Member States' authorities. It may also discuss general questions of European Union law.
Amendment 1159 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 1
Article 33 – paragraph 1
1. When three or more Member States request the Commission to open an investigation pursuant to Article 15 because they consider that there aor organisations and associations that have a legitimate interest in re preasonable grounds to suspect that a providsenting business users ofr core platform services should be designated as a gatekeeper, the Commission shall within four months examine whethernsumers request the Commission to open an investigation pursuant to Articles 15, 16 or 17 because they consider that there are reasonable grounds to open such an investigationsuspect that.
Amendment 1163 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 33 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. a provider of core platform services should be designated as a gatekeeper, or
Amendment 1165 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 1 b (new)
Article 33 – paragraph 1 b (new)
1b. a gatekeeper has systematically infringed the obligations laid down in Articles 5 and 6 and has further strengthened or extended its gatekeeper position in relation to the characteristics under Article 3(1), or
Amendment 1166 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 1 c (new)
Article 33 – paragraph 1 c (new)
1c. one or more services within the digital sector should be added to the list of core platform services, or
Amendment 1167 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 1 d (new)
Article 33 – paragraph 1 d (new)
1d. types of practices that may limit the contestability of core platform services or may be unfair are not effectively addressed by this Regulation,
Amendment 1168 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 1 e (new)
Article 33 – paragraph 1 e (new)
1e. the Commission shall within four months examine whether there are reasonable grounds to open such an investigation. The Commission shall give reasons for its decision not to open an investigation.
Amendment 1172 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 – paragraph 2
Article 33 – paragraph 2
2. Member StatesThose submitting a request for a market investigation shall submit evidence in support of their request.
Amendment 1177 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 a (new)
Article 33 a (new)
Article 33 a Jurisdiction of national courts National courts shall have jurisdiction to apply this Regulation.
Amendment 1178 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 b (new)
Article 33 b (new)
Amendment 1180 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 33 c (new)
Article 33 c (new)
Article 33 c Uniform application of European Union law 1. Where national courts rule on practices covered by this Regulation which are already the subject of a Commission decision, they may not take decisions which would run counter to the decision adopted by the Commission. They must also avoid taking decisions which would run counter to the decision envisaged in proceedings brought by the Commission. To this end, the national court may assess whether it is necessary to suspend its proceedings. This obligation is without prejudice to the rights and obligations under Article 267 TFEU. 2. Where the competition authorities of the Member States decide on practices covered by this Regulation which are already the subject of a Commission decision, they may not take decisions which would run counter to the decision adopted by the Commission.