Activities of Marlene MIZZI related to 2016/0152(COD)
Plenary speeches (1)
Geo-blocking and other forms of discrimination based on customers' nationality, place of residence or place of establishment (A8-0172/2017 - Róża Gräfin von Thun und Hohenstein)
Amendments (29)
Amendment 81 #
Proposal for a regulation
Title
Title
Proposal for a REGULATION OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL on addressing unjustified geo-blocking and other forms of discrimination based on custoonsumers' nationality, or place of residence or place of establishment within the internal market and amending Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 and Directive 2009/22/EC (Text with EEA relevance)
Amendment 86 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 1
Recital 1
(1) In order to realise the objective of ensuring good functioning of the internal market, as an area without internal frontiers in which the free movement of inter alia goods and services is ensured, it is not sufficient to abolish, as between Member States, only State barriers. Such abolition can be undermined by private parties putting in place obstacles inconsistent with internal market freedoms. That occurs where traders operating in one Member State block or limit the access to their online interfaces, such as websites and apps, of custoonsumers from other Member States wishing to engage in cross-border commercial transactions (a practice known as geo-blocking). It also occurs through other actions by certain traders involving the application of different general conditions of access to their goods and services with respect to such custoonsumers from other Member States, both online and offline. Whereas there may sometimes be objective justifications for such differential treatment, in other cases traders deny consumers wishing to engage in cross- border commercial transactions access to goods or services, or apply different conditions in this regard, for purely commercialunjustified reasons.
Amendment 92 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 2
Recital 2
(2) In this manner certain traders artificially segment the internal market along internal frontiers and hamper the free movement of goods and services, thus restricting the rights of custoonsumers and preventing them from benefitting from a wider choice and optimal conditions. Such discriminatory practices are an important factor contributing to the relatively low level of cross-border commercial transactions within the Union, including in the sector of electronic commerce, which prevents the full growth potential of the internal market from being realised. Clarifying in which situations there can be no justification for differential treatment of this kind should bring clarity and legal certainty for all participants in cross-border transactions and should ensure that rules on non-discrimination can be effectively applied and enforced across the internal market.
Amendment 102 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5
Recital 5
(5) This Regulation aims at preventing unjustified discrimination based on customers' nationality, place of residence or place of establishment, including geo- blocking, in cross-border commercial transactions between traders and customers relating to the sales of goods and the provision of services within the Union. It seeks to address direct as well as indirect unjustified discrimination, thus also covering unjustified differences of treatment on the basis of other distinguishing criteria which lead to the same result as the application of criteria directly based on custoonsumers' nationality, or place of residence or place of establishment. Such other criteria can be applied, in particular, on the basis of information indicating the physical location of custoonsumers, such as the IP address used when accessing an online interface, the address submitted for the delivery of goods, the choice language made or the Member State where the custoonsumer's payment instrument has been issued.
Amendment 109 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 5 a (new)
Recital 5 a (new)
(5a) Geoblocking is incompatible with the fundamental principles of the single market. However, there are a number of well-founded reasons why companies, in particular SMEs and micro-enterprises, should avoid or refuse cross-border trade or adapt general conditions of sale, in particular related to divergent legal environments, including taxation and fiscal issues, additional national requirements, additional delivery costs, or language requirements for pre- contractual information.
Amendment 117 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 6
Recital 6
(6) Considering that some regulatory and administrative barriers for traders have been removed across the Union in certain services sectors as a result of the implementation of Directive 2006/123/EC, in terms of material scope, consistency should be ensured between this Regulation and Directive 2006/123/EC. As a consequence, the provisions of this Regulation should apply inter alia to non- audio-visual electronically supplied services, the main feature of which is the provision of access to and use of copyright protected works or other protected subject matter, subject however to the specific exclusion provided for in Article 4 and the subsequent evaluation of that exclusion as provided for in Article 9. Audio-visual services, including services the main feature of which is the provision of access to broadcasts of sports events and which are provided on the basis of exclusive territorial licenses, are excluded from the scope of this Regulation. Access to retail financial services, including payment services, should therefore also be excluded, notwithstanding the provisions of this Regulation regarding non-discrimination in payments.
Amendment 137 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 10 a (new)
Recital 10 a (new)
(10a) The mere fact that a trader acts in accordance with the provisions of this Regulation should not be interpreted as a sign that he is directing his activities to the Member State of the consumer within the meaning of Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 and Regulation (EU) No 1215/2012, in accordance with the well established case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union.
Amendment 145 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 12
Recital 12
Amendment 223 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 26
Recital 26
(26) This Regulation should not affect the application of the rules on competition, and in particular Articles 101 and 102 TFEU. Agreements imposing on traders obligations not to engage in passive sales within the meaning of Commission Regulation (EU) No 330/201029 to certain custospecific group of consumers or to custoonsumers in certain territories are generally considered restrictive of competition and cannot normally be exempted from the prohibition laid down in Article 101(1) TFEU. Even whenHowever, in certain exceptional cases, theyse agre not caught by Article 101 TFEU, in the context of the application of this Regulements may be considered to comply with Article 101 TFEU. This applies in particular to agreements restricting passive sales because of economic justifications, they disrupt the proper functioning of the internal market and they may be used to circumvent the provisions of this Regulation. The relevant provisions of such agreements and of other agreements in respect of passive sales requiring the trader to act in violation of this Regulation should therefore be automatically void. However, tfor example in order to allow innovations in the field of new products. In these duly justified cases, the trader should not be deemed to act in breach of this Regulation when they abstain from making passive sales. The application of this Regulation should not affect those agreements. This Regulation, and in particular its provisions on access to goods or services, should not affect agreements restricting active sales within the meaning of Regulation (EU) No 330/2010. __________________ 29 Commission Regulation (EU) No 330/2010 of 20 April 2010 on the application of Article 101(3) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union to categories of vertical agreements and concerted practices (OJ L 102, 23.4.2010, p. 1).
Amendment 252 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1
Article 1 – paragraph 1
1. The purpose of this Regulation seekis to contribute to the proper functioning of the internal market by preventing unjustified discrimination based, directly or indirectly, on the nationality, or place of residence or place of establishment of customersf consumers and by defining situations where different treatment cannot be justified under Article 20(2) of Directive 2006/123/EC.
Amendment 262 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – point a
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – point a
(a) where the trader sells goods, provides services, or seeks to do so, in a Member State other than the Member State in which the custoconsumer has the place of residence or the place of establishment;
Amendment 270 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – point b
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – point b
(b) where the trader sells goods, provides services, or seeks to do so, in the same Member State as the one in which the custoonsumer has the place of residence or place of establishment, but the customer, but is a national of another Member State;
Amendment 275 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – point c
Article 1 – paragraph 2 – point c
(c) where the trader sells goods or provides services, or seeks to do so, in a Member State in which the custoonsumer is temporarily located without residing in that Member State or having the place of establishment in that Member State.
Amendment 282 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 3
Article 1 – paragraph 3
3. This Regulation does not apply to the activities referred to in Article 2(2) of Directive 2006/123/EC and to activities of purely internal national situations, where all the relevant elements of the sale of goods or services are confined within one single Member State and the consumer is a national of the same Member State.
Amendment 286 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 4 a (new)
Article 1 – paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. This Regulation shall not affect the rules applicable in the field of copyright and neighbouring rights.
Amendment 293 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 5
Article 1 – paragraph 5
5. This Regulation shall not affect acts ofbe without prejudice to the applicable Union law concerning judicial cooperation in civil matters. CThe mere compliance with this Regulation shall not be construed as implying that a trader directs his or her activities to the Member State where the consumer has the habitual residence or domicile within the meaning of point (b) of Article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 and point (c) of Article 17(1) of Regulation (EU) 1215/2012. In particular, where a trader, acting in accordance with Articles 3, 4 and 5, does not block or restrict consumer access to his on-line interface, does not redirect him or her to a different version of his on-line interface to which the consumer has sought access originally, irrespective of his or her nationality or place of residence, does not apply different general conditions of access in situations provided for by this Regulation, that trader cannot be regarded, solely on these grounds, as directing its activities to the Member State in which the consumer has his or her habitual residence or domicile.
Amendment 294 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 5
Article 1 – paragraph 5
5. This Regulation shall not affect acts of Union law concerning judicial cooperation in civil matters. Compliance with this Regulation and in particular traders activities in accordance with Article 3, 4 and 5 of this Regulation shall not be construed as implying that a trader directs his or her activities to actively approach single consumers in the Member State where the consumer has the habitual residence or domicile within the meaning of point (b) of Article 6(1) of Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 and point (c) of Article 17(1) of Regulation (EU) 1215/2012, in the situations when they are not blocking or limiting consumers' access to his/her online interface, not redirecting consumers to a different online interface and are not applying different general conditions of access or pricing.
Amendment 297 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 6
Article 1 – paragraph 6
6. Insofar as the provisions of this Regulation conflict with the provisions of Article 20(2) of Directive 2006/123/EC, the specific provisions ofand obligations for traders in this Regulation shall prevail.
Amendment 299 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point c
Article 2 – paragraph 2 – point c
Amendment 316 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 1
Article 3 – paragraph 1
1. The traders shall not, through the use of technological measures or otherwise, block or limit custoonsumers' access to their online interface for reasons related to the nationality, or place of residence or place of establishment of the custoonsumer.
Amendment 327 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2
In the event of such redirection with the custoonsumer's explicit prior consent, the original version of the online interface the consumer originally sought to access shall remain easily accessible for that custoonsumer.
Amendment 345 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
1. Traders and an online market place shall not apply different general conditions of access to their goods or services, for reasons related to the nationality, or place of residence or place of establishment of the custof the consumer, in the following situations:
Amendment 354 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point a
(a) where the trader sells goods and those goods are not delivered cross-border to the Member State of the customer by the trader or on his or her behalfto a location in a Member State to which the trader offers delivery in his general conditions of access or, are collected at a location agreed upon between the trader and the consumer in a Member State in which the trader offers such option;
Amendment 370 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 4 – paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. The prohibition set out in paragraph 1 shall not prevent traders from offering general conditions of access, including sale prices, which differ between Member States and which are offered to consumers on a specific territory due to different national regulations, standards and requirements and due to the additional costs resulting from a compliance with the different national regulatory environment in a territory other than the operator's chosen territory.
Amendment 384 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – introductory part
1. The traders shall not, for reasons related to the nationality, or place of residence or place of establishment of the custoonsumer, the location of the payment account, the place of establishment of the payment service provider or the place of issue of the payment instrument within the Union, apply different conditions of payment for any sales of goods or provision of serviceswhen using credit transfers, direct debits or a card-based payment instrument of a specific payment brand and category, where:
Amendment 391 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point a
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point a
Amendment 392 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point b
(b) the payee can requestidentity of the payer or the validity of the use of the payment instrument is verifiable by strong custoonsumer authentication by the payer pursuant to the Directive (EU) 2015/2366; and
Amendment 399 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point c
Article 5 – paragraph 1 – point c
(c) the payments are in a currency that the payeetrader accepts.
Amendment 411 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 6 – paragraph 1 a (new)
Article 6 – paragraph 1 a (new)
The prohibitions laid down in this Regulation shall not apply in situations where the traders are bound by an agreement requiring them to restrict their passive sales and to offer services and/or sell products in a given country due to the nature of a contractual relationship with a supplier/distributor in that country and when such restrictions are in accordance with Article 101 TFEU and with Regulation (EU) No 330/2010.