Commission Launches Public Consultation on the Future of E-Commerce
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The EC Commission has launched this month a public consultation on the future of electronic commerce in the internal market, and the implementation of the Directive on electronic commerce (2000/31/EC) (the Directive).
The Commission wishes to undertake the consultation for two reasons namely, it wishes to study the many reasons for the limited takeoff of e-commerce in the EU and to evaluate the implementation of the Directive.
All interested parties are required to submit their responses to the questionnaire by 15 October 2010. The Commission has specified target groups from whom comments would be particularly welcome, for example Ministries responsible for various aspects of e-commerce; economic operators of the information society; the regulated professions – pharmacists, lawyers and magistrates; consumers and consumer associations; and rightsholders and organisations representing them.
The Commission is seeking the views of interested parties on the following subjects:
- the level of development of information society services;
- issues concerning the application of Article 3(4) of the Directive by Member States – which concerns Member States’ ability to take measures to derogate from the general principle that Member States must not restrict the freedom to provide information society services from another Member State;
- contractual restrictions on cross-border online sales;
- cross-border online commercial communications, in particular by the regulated professions;
- the development of online press services;
- the interpretation of the provisions of the Directive concerning the liability of intermediary information society service providers;
- the development of on-line pharmacies; and
- the resolution of on-line disputes.
The questionnaire is available online here.
