Activities of Viviane REDING related to 2017/2065(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Towards a digital trade strategy (short presentation) FR
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT Towards a digital trade strategy PDF (403 KB) DOC (87 KB)
Amendments (31)
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 15
Citation 15
Amendment 21 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas electronic commerce is an engine for growth and productivity in the entire economy, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises;
Amendment 24 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Stresses that any European digital trade strategy or provisions for cross- border data flows andCalls on the Commission to ensure that cross-border data transfers are in compliance with the existing and future EU legal framework, in particular through adequacy decisions, and to incorporate in our trade agreements on afirst and foree flow legal provision should fully respect the EU data protection acquis and comply with EU fundamental rights standards; most a horizontal provision, which fully maintains the right of a Party to protect personal data and privacy, with the only condition that it must not be used with the intention to restrict data flows for reasons other than the protection of personal data, accompanied with a second provision, which prevents unjustified requirements for data localisation;
Amendment 29 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Emphasises that digital trade is best facilitated through an open exchange of data, with no geographical restrictions; considers that the removal of data localisation requirements should be a top priority, while emphasising that the relevant data protection legstresses the need to ensure that cross- border transfers of personal data are in compliance with the existing and future EU legal framework, in particular through adequacy decisions; calls above all for the inclusion in EU trade agreements of a horizontal provision which fully maintains the right of a Party to protect personal data and privacy, with the only condition that it must not be used with the intention to restrict data flows for reasons other than the protection of personal data; considers that the removal of unjustified data localislation should be adhered torequirements should also be a top priority, and therefore calls for the inclusion in EU trade agreements of a second provision preventing unjustified requirements for data localisation;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas foreign companies currently benefit from far greater access to the European market than Europeans do in third countries; whereas many of our trade partners are increasingly closing their domestic markets and resorting to digital protectionism; whereas the EU should anchor its digital trade strategy on the principles of reciprocity, fair competition, smart regulation and transparency with the view to restoring consumers’ trust and to restoring a level playing field for businesses;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas the building blocks that preserve the open internet inof the EU’s digital single market, including those principles that preserve the open Internet such as fair competition, net neutrality and intermediary liability protections, should be promoted in Free Trade Agreements (FTAs)exemptions, and those rules that protect Internet users against data privacy breaches, spams and geo-blocking restrictions, should be promoted in Free Trade Agreements (FTAs), to the benefit of European consumers and businesses alike; whereas the completion of a truly European Digital Single Market is of utmost importance for the EU to play its role as international standard-setter;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G a (new)
Recital G a (new)
Ga. whereas several ground-breaking legislations, including but not limited to the opening of the telecommunications market to competition since 2009, the recognition of net neutrality since 2015, the abolition of roaming fees since 2017, and the entry into force of the General Data Protection Regulation from 2018 onwards, have propelled the EU into the vanguard;
Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas private companies are increasingly setting norms and standards in the digital economy; whereas they must go further and faster in developing technological solutions, which could help prevent, detect and remove illegal content online;
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H a (new)
Recital H a (new)
Ha. whereas the EU has a paramount interest in shaping the globalisation and digitalisation of our economies and of international trade, at the same time two of the main engines for growth for businesses and two of main causes for concern for citizens; whereas the economic opportunities and the societal challenges of new technologies (e.g. nanotechnology, biotechnology, information technology and cognitive science) and of new applications (artificial intelligence, blockchain and robotics) must be respectively unleashed and mitigated;
Amendment 62 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H b (new)
Recital H b (new)
Hb. whereas according to the OECD, up to 5% of goods imported into to the EU are counterfeited, resulting in substantial losses in jobs and tax revenues;
Amendment 63 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H c (new)
Recital H c (new)
Hc. whereas sensitive sectors such as audio-visual services, and fundamental rights such as the protection of personal data should not be subject to trade negotiations;
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H d (new)
Recital H d (new)
Hd. whereas according to special Eurobarometer 431, nine out of ten Europeans think that it is important for them to have the same rights and protection over their personal information, regardless of the country in which the public authority or private company offering the service is based;
Amendment 71 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Considers that European standards shall be fully-safeguarded in the trade agreements the Commission negotiates, and where possible commuted into international standards; stresses that global trade rules on e-commerce are an instrument for growth and a tool to project our values; rejects digital protectionism, mass surveillance and online censorship; supports freedom of expression and information, personal data protection and encryption;
Amendment 73 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that access to secure broadband internet connectivity and digital payment methods, effective consumer protection, in particular redress mechanisms for online cross-border sales, and predictable customs procedures, are essential elements in relation to enabling digital trade, sustainable development and inclusive growth; reiterates its demand to identify the challenges that consumers face when they buy goods and services on e-commerce websites located outside the EU, and to propose concrete measures if need be;
Amendment 77 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 a (new)
Paragraph 2 a (new)
2a. Stresses the importance in trade agreements to promote fair and effective competition, in particular between digital service providers such as online platforms and users such as SMEs, to promote consumer choice, to ensure non- discriminatory treatment of all market players and to avoid the creation of dominant positions that distort the markets;
Amendment 92 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the Commission to prioritise and speed up the adoption of mutual adequacy decisions, provided that third countries ensure, by reason of their domestic law or their international commitments, a level of protection "essentially equivalent" to that guaranteed within the EU; calls on the Commission to adopt, and to make public, updated and detailed binding procedures for reaching these decisions, in full respect for national supervisory authorities’ powers and for the European Parliament’s opinion;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6 a (new)
Paragraph 6 a (new)
6a. Requires that nothing in trade agreements, neither market access commitments, nor regulatory standards, nor general exceptions, shall prevent the EU and its Members from maintaining, improving and applying its data protection rules; recalls that personal data can be transferred to third countries when the requirements enshrined today in the Chapter IV of the current Data Protection Directive and tomorrow in the Chapter V of the forthcoming Data Protection Regulation are fulfilled;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Ccalls on the Commission to prohibitensure that cross-border data transfers are in compliance with the existing and future EU legal framework, in particular through adequacy decisions, and to incorporate in our trade agreements first and foremost a horizontal provision, which fully maintains the right of a Party to protect personal data and privacy, with the only condition that it must not be used with the intention to restrict data flows for reasons other than the protection of personal data, accompanied with a second provision, which prevents unjustified data localisation requirements in FTAs;
Amendment 123 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Calls on the Commission to put forward its position on cross-border data transfers, data protection carve-out and unjustified data localisation requirements in trade negotiations before the end of the yearterm, in close coordination with the European Parliament and in line with its position;
Amendment 128 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 9
Paragraph 9
9. Calls on the Commission to combat discriminatory, illegitimate and protectionist measures by third countries, such as ‘buy local’ policies, local content requirements or forced technology transfers, to ensure that European companies can operate in a fair and predictable environment; calls on the Commission to condition in future FTAs several of its market access commitments on reciprocal commitments by the other Party under the same category, including public procurement, Mode 1 and Mode 4;
Amendment 135 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Stresses that the EU should continue to pursue its efforts at bilateral , plurilateral and multilateral level to ensure that third countries offer a level of openness towards foreign investments equivalent to that of the EU, and that they maintain a level playing field for EU operators; welcomes the EU’s proposal for a regulation establishing a framework for review of foreign direct investments into the Union and supports its objectives to better protect critical infrastructures and technologies;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13
Paragraph 13
13. Notes that the protection of trademarks, intellectual property (IP) andrights (IPR), including those related to copyright, geographical indications, trademarks, trade secrets and patents, is indispensable to encourage and reward artistic creation and industrial innovation, that investments in R&D isare a precondition tof the EU’s knowledge-based economy, and that international cooperation is key to combating the trade in counterfeited goods; stresses, however, that trade agreements are not the place to extend the level of protection for rights holders by providing for more extensive copyright enforcement powers all along the value chain; stresses; therefore encourages the Commission to push for the worldwide implementation of international standards, such as the WTO Agreement on TRIPS as well as the WIPO Internet Treaties; stresses the need to strike the right balance between the promotion of due diligence and the maintaining of an innovation-friendly approach; stresses that access to medicines in third countries should not be challenged on the basis of IP protection;
Amendment 148 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 13 a (new)
Paragraph 13 a (new)
13a. Exhorts the Commission to keep a close eye on ICANN’s gTLD Program, which expands domain names to thousands of generic names, and to guarantee, in line with its commitment to a free and open Internet, the protection of rights holders, in particular those related to geographical indications;
Amendment 149 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. Calls on the Commission to use trade agreements to prevent parties from imposing foreign equity caps by, to laying down pro-competitive wholesale access rules for incumbent operators’ networks and by securing, to provide transparent and non-discriminatory rules and fees for licensing, and to secure genuine access to last- mile infrastructures in export markets for EU telecom providers; recalls that rule-based competition in the telecommunications sector leads to higher quality services and lower prices;
Amendment 156 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Calls on the Commission to continue its efforts towards developing a set of binding multilateral disciplines on e- commerce in the WTO, and to continue focusing on concrete and realistic deliverables;
Amendment 158 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15 a (new)
Paragraph 15 a (new)
15a. Calls on the Commission to urgently re-launch TiSA negotiations; shares the view that EU should seize the window of opportunity to take the lead to set state-of-the art global digital standards;
Amendment 163 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17
Paragraph 17
17. Calls on the Commission to use trade agreements to promote the interoperability of ICT-standards that benefit both consumers and producers, notably in the context of a secure Internet of things, 5G and cybersecurity;
Amendment 166 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Calls on the Commission to encourage signatories of trade agreements to bring pressure to bear on mobile providers toinclude, in the telecommunications chapter of its FTAs, provisions makeing both international roaming fees and the fees applied to international calls and messages transparent, fair, reasonable and consumer- oriented; calls on the Commission to support policies that promote cost-oriented retail prices for roaming services with a view to reducing prices;
Amendment 171 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 19
Paragraph 19
19. Recognises that the principle of intermediary liability protecexemptions has been crucial in developing the digital economy and in guaranteeing freedom of speech; calls on the Commission to ensure in its trade negotiations that online intermediaries must never be made strictly liable for hosting unlawful third-party content, nor should they ever be required to monitor content proactively as part of an intermediary liability regimeuphold EU law in this regard in its trade negotiations;
Amendment 172 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 20
Paragraph 20
20. Strongly supports the further mainstreaming of digital technologies and services in the EU’s development policy and among others the Digital4Development initiative; recognises the multiplier effect digital technologies can have in achieving Sustainable Development Goals; calls on the Commission to stimulate public-private partnerships to increase investments in digital infrastructure in the Global South; urges the Commission to make investments in broadband infrastructure in developing countries conditional upon respect for a free, open and secure internet; calls on the Commission to use trade agreements to improve digital rights; takes note with deep concern of the conclusion of the recent UN Global Broadband Progress report highlighting a growing digital divide between developed and developing nations;
Amendment 186 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 21 a (new)
Paragraph 21 a (new)
21a. Commits to update its eTrade strategy every 5 years;