Epicenter Archives
5 December 2023
The online pornography industry has historically been a pioneer of many innovations that have later influenced the rest of the internet. Among others, the …
20 July 2023
Competition is a discovery process between rival firms and can only be explained if the information is imperfect. It is the most effective way …
In July 2023 the European Commission starts the process of designating gatekeepers on digital markets. Large digital companies deemed to have a large user …
30 May 2023
The rest of the world is keen to adopt technological innovations, but Italy seems to be stuck in the past. Italy’s productivity growth has …
3 May 2023
Until recently, the telecommunications market was held up as an EU success story, with Europeans emerging as the big winners. European consumers were indeed …
9 March 2022
The European Parliament, the European Commission, and the European Council continue negotiations on the Digital Markets Act (DMA), a proposed regulation aimed at curtailing …
15 February 2022
The European Commission has proposed a Directive of the European Parliament and Council on improving working conditions on platform work. The proposal lays down …
13 October 2021
The proposed EU Digital Services Act (DSA) aims to protect users of digital services, but unfortunately it also creates serious new risks for both …
Antoine Hoizey // 9 September 2021
The GAFAM, an acronym for US tech giants Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft, are constantly – and wrongly – accused of not paying …
Julia Pieza // 27 July 2021
Since the 2018 Bitcoin crash and more recently since Facebook’s announcement of a global ‘stablecoin’ Diem, the EU has taken a greater interest in …
30 June 2021
The European Union has targeted large online platforms as potential threats to competition in the digital world. According to the Commission’s Vice President and …
23 July 2021
The EU Commission proposed the new Digital Services Act (DSA) and Digital Markets Act (DMA) in December 2020. Collectively, these proposals are an important …
9 June 2021
On 15 December 2020, the EU Commission released a proposal for a Regulation on Contestable and Fair Markets in the Digital Sector – referred …
Julia Pieza // 26 May 2021
The Covid-19 pandemic accelerated the rate of digitisation in European healthcare systems. Europe’s ageing population projections estimate that by 2070 people aged 65 or …
Javier Santacruz // 24 May 2021
Last month, civil society and regulators celebrated World Consumer Rights Day, an occasion to mark the rights of consumers. This year, the date took …
Len Shackleton // 21 May 2021
Working at home is something many of us have got used to – maybe too used to – over the last year. In a …
Cécile Philippe // 28 April 2021
Tax shifts are widespread – often at the expense of the consumer – but governments do not always seem to be aware of the …
Ryan E. Long // 20 April 2021
Imagine you just purchased a painting from Sotheby’s called Portrait of Edmond Belamy (“Portrait”) for $432,500. Portrait was AI-generated. Your neighbour Jim takes a …
Tom Spencer // 25 March 2021
Amidst a global populist attack on “Big Tech”, the European Union has not just failed to resist, but has embraced unwarranted attacks on some …
Julia Milis // 8 December 2020
In light of the recent terrorist attacks in mainland Europe, the Council of the European Union has released a draft resolution to reconsider encryption …
Niccolo Fantini // 23 November 2020
The Trump administration has engaged in an all-out war against Chinese technology and its exports to the US, with the President recently signing off …
Julia Milis // 20 November 2020
As we are nearing the end of the German presidency of the Council of the EU, it is time to assess the term’s projects …
Erik Paessler // 3 November 2020
The European Commission recently published a Digital Finance Strategy which includes concrete propositions for the regulation of crypto-assets. This is the first time a …
6 October 2020
The European Commission has published a study on working conditions of platform workers. The report identifies key challenges related to platform work, such as …
27 May 2020
In February the Commission published the White Paper On Artificial Intelligence – A European approach to excellence and trust. It includes some interesting proposals …
Zine-Eddine Aklil // 3 March 2020
Despite being a fierce supporter of pro-Europeanism and market liberalisation in the past, Emmanuel Macron’s plans for European-wide protectionism has been relatively unsuccessful. Early …
Zine-Eddine Aklil // 26 February 2020
With increased security risks concerning Huawei’s ties with the Chinese state and the firm’s planned rollout of 5G across Europe, the European Commission appears …
Dr Andrew Lilico // 5 February 2020
The 2020s will see the introduction of one of the most profoundly transformative technologies for decades: the driverless car. In the world we have …
Alexander C. R. Hammond // 8 January 2020
The 2010s are over. As we embark on the 2020s, now is the perfect time to reflect on the immense technological advancements that humanity …
Alex Zhang // 4 December 2019
Facing the competition from North America and Asia, the European Union has proposed the launch of an ambitious €100 billion budget plan for funding …
6 November 2019
Libra, the new private digital money system sponsored by Facebook and a consortium of other firms, was announced on 18th June 2019, and officially …
Diego Zúniga Aguilera // 17 October 2019
The European Commission has fined in July telecommunications multinational Qualcomm with €242 million as it condemns them for selling chipsets “below cost” and therefore …
Matteo Baccaglini // 29 July 2019
Media pluralism in Europe is under threat. Far from exhibiting a rich diversity of opinions, content, ownership and structures, Europe’s media sector faces considerable …
Matteo Baccaglini // 25 July 2019
A motorist in the average European state spends 29 hours a year stuck in traffic. This is a waste, costing drivers in the EU …
26 June 2019
This paper explains why additional taxes on the turnover of companies with a large digital presence would be disproportionate, discriminatory and damage the European …
Catherine McBride // 22 May 2019
There is a current trend for corporate protectionism growing in the heart of the EU. Both the French and the German government as well …
Victoria Hewson // 27 March 2019
Yesterday, the European Parliament voted in favour of the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market, in one of the final stages before it becomes …
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