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The EU Data Act has entered into force and is a pivotal legislation aiming to reshape the fair distribution of value generated from data in the digital economy.
The Data Act has been published on the Official Gazette of the European Union and now has come into force. In this article, delve into the main aspects of the Act.
The Data Act: Objectives and Impacts
The Data Act mandates service providers and product manufacturers to allow users to access and reuse data from their services. This includes sharing data with third parties and enhancing data portability across all economic sectors. It applies to both personal and non-personal data, emphasizing greater control for individuals and businesses.
One of the key goals is to stimulate a competitive data market. By facilitating access to data, it opens new doors for innovation and ensures fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory data sharing practices. The Data Act distinguishes between product data and related service data, providing robust protection for trade secrets and intellectual property rights.
The Criticalities deriving from the new Data Portability Right provided by the Data Act
The Data Act provides for the potential sharing of non-personal data with third parties as a consequence of the new data portability right. This provision might be considerably problematic for businesses, and appropriate safeguards shall be put in place to avoid the communication of confidential information.
The question is whether businesses will adopt this right globally. The answer is not easy. If, for instance, US companies offer their products in the EU, they must obviously comply with the Data Act even if sales originate from outside the EU. On the contrary, it is unlikely that they will offer the same rights granted by the Data Act globally to customers located outside the EU since it is not in their interest.
Future Context and Implementation
The Data Act complements the Data Governance Act, aiming to establish a data-driven economy by 2030. The Data Act will become applicable in 20 months from the publication on the Official Gazette, i.e. 12 September 2025.
Conclusion
The approval of the Data Act marks a major step in the EU’s digital regulatory landscape. It represents a significant move towards an equitable and innovative digital future, setting the stage for a transformative decade in the digital economy.
On a similar topic, you can read the article “Digital Services Act (DSA): Obligations for Large Online Platforms in Force“.
