05 Mar 2024

The Lens Newsletter - March 2024

A selection of our latest blogs on all things digital from our experts and thought leaders here at Slaughter and May.

A “missed economic opportunity”: the European Commission publishes its Digital Infrastructure White Paper. 

On 21st February, the European Commission (EC) published a White Paper titled “How to master Europe’s digital infrastructure needs?”.  The paper’s findings and proposals follow years of feedback from industry players that the EU’s... Read more. 

Cautionary tales for privacy compliance from Hong Kong’s Privacy Commissioner.

At the end of 2023 Hong Kong’s Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) published two investigation reports with useful reminders for organisations:  Instant messaging and failure to maintain employee records Over the past... Read more. 

DSA now fully in force. 

As of 17 February 2024, the EU’s Digital Services Act (“DSA”) is now fully in force for all in-scope intermediary service providers. For the first set of designated very large online platforms and search engines – the so-called VLOPs and VLOSEs,... Read more. 

New AI rules on the horizon for GenAI? UK Government response to AI white paper. 

The Westminster government confirmed this week that the UK “is on course for more agile AI regulation.” We’ve known for some time that it is not looking to the follow the EU in proposing a dedicated AI Act, but now have confirmation (in the form... Read more. 

Not For Today! UK Government rejects Committee recommendations to address NFT IP concerns. 

In October last year, the Culture, Media and Sport (“CMS”) Committee of the UK House of Commons published a report entitled “NFTs and the Blockchain: the risks to sport and culture”. Intellectual property issues, and in particular, copyright... Read more. 

“I still haven’t found what I’m looking for” – back to square one after UK government abandons voluntary code of practice on copyright and AI. 

The UK government confirmed in its recent AI white paper consultation response (more on that here) that the technical working group convened by the UKIPO last summer (see here) has failed to reach agreement on what a voluntary code... Read more. 

New boundaries for digital markets? European Commission updates guidance on market definition. 

On 8 February 2024, the European Commission unveiled updated guidance on its approach to defining markets when enforcing EU competition rules. According to the Commission, the revisions are intended to reflect new market realities, “in particular... Read more. 

ICO to continue issuing warnings on cookie compliance. 

Last week the ICO announced it had received an ‘overwhelmingly positive response’ to the warnings it issued last November to 53 of the UK’s top 100 websites, telling them to improve their cookie practices (see our blog). The warnings resulted in... Read more. 

Fake reviews and ‘hidden’ online fees to be banned under new digital markets and consumer protection rules. 

In a bid to better protect consumers from deceptive practices in the digital economy, the UK Department for Business and Trade announced on 24 January that it is set to introduce stringent measures targeting fake reviews, hidden... Read more. 

 

This material is provided for general information only. It does not constitute legal or other professional advice.

Contact Information
Rob Sumroy
Partner at Slaughter and May
Duncan Blaikie
Partner at Slaughter and May
Natalie Donovan
PSL Counsel and Head of Knowledge Tech and Digital at Slaughter and May