Next Commission should have mid-term review of digital rulebook, revise audiovisual media directive

The next European Commission should have a mid-term review of its digital rulebook, and revise the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD), says an internal briefing document seen by Euractiv.

The “briefing book” on “digital policy and society”, is a draft European Commission document possibly dating to January. One section, for example, is empty, waiting for results of a “tracking process” to assess digital decade targets, which are “to be published in late June.”

Briefing books have been used before during the handover of power from one mandate to the next, which the EU executive is currently preparing for.

The document largely focuses on implementing the legislation passed in the previous mandate.

The next Commission commits itself to a mid-term review of the digital rulebook, such as regulation on competition, the Digital Markets Act, content moderation, the Digital Services Act, and artificial intelligence.

These Acts come with their review timelines, the document notes. For example, a review of the DSA is targeted for 2025, and the DMA in 2026.

Gaps in the rulebook have already become obvious, particularly around “influencers, advertising services and cloud services,” the briefing book says.

The briefing suggests a revision of the AVMSD, last seen in 2018, which “governs EU-wide coordination of national legislation on all audiovisual media,” according to the Commission’s website.

The aim would be to modernise the AVMSD in light of the digital reality. The revised directive would also apply to influencers, both based in the EU but also those targeting EU users, says the briefing book.

Such a revision is likely to have support from member states, says the document.

Currently, studies are being conducted concerning the effectiveness of the DMA and DSA with regards to advertising and data, says the briefing. Based on these studies, how possible gaps in the regulations can be addressed will be determined, either through codes of conduct or new regulatory initiatives.

The EU should also integrate existing capacities for the detection, analysis and reaction to disinformation into a central hub of expertise within the Commission.

Specifically, the briefing book suggests supporting the Europe Digital Media Observatory and its regional hubs, to become a permanent and dependent structure detecting and dealing with disinformation.

[Edited by Rajnish Singh]

Read more with Euractiv