Digital Single Market

The Digital Single Market is a strategy introduced by the European Commission on 6th May 2015. The Digital Single Market establishes a universal digital economic zone for the 28 member countries.

The idea behind it is that the single market for Europe already enables the free movement of people, goods and capital between the EU countries, but in the digital (online) realm considerable limitations and restrictions still exist. Various consumer protection directives, data protection regulations and copyright regulations in member states of the EU limit the action radius of European online providers compared to those of the USA.

The goal of the "Digital Single Market" strategy is based on three tiers:

• First tier: Improving access for consumers of digital products and services 

Regulations for simplifying transnational electronic trading belong to this tier. These include, for example, affordable and quick international delivery services, with which consumers, as well as companies, can order more easily from outside Europe. The standardisation of regulations for collective excercise of copy- and related protection rights, as well as giving out the so called multiple territory licenses, are regulated in this tier. This also includes simplified VAT regulations, consumer protection guidelines and the prevention of unjustified geo-blocking. 

• Second tier: Optimisation of parameters for digital networks and services 

The second tier includes a planned reform of the EU telecommunication regulations (e.g. coordination of the frequency use as well as collective EU-wide criteria for frequency allocation, implementation of incentives for greater expansion of broadband networks etc.) and analysing items concerning the use of there collected data, transparency of search results, prices and prevention of illegal contents. 

• Third tier: Best possible exploitation of potential in the digital economy of the EU 

The third tier includes the proposed European initiative for free flow of data, to enable free data transfer within in the EU. Means by which citizens acquire necessary skills to make use of Internet opportunities also belong to this tier. Furthermore, the Commission will propose a European Cloud Initiative, which will be about certifying Cloud services, to give the option to change Cloud service providers to a search Cloud.  

In their Roadmap, the EU Commission shows what has already been achieved in the previous year, and what should be done in 2016. 

See alo:​
Copyright and Participation in the Digital Era

See also: Data Protection, Safe Harbour

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