Intermediaries' liability in the online provision of services in light of the upcoming EU law reform in the sector: legal issues in view of illegal content removal

Jacob ESPEJO ROSA

Master's thesis

Abstract:

The development of electronic commerce in the internal market made clear the need for a coherent and harmonised regulation at the European level. This was subsequently translated into the adoption of the Directive 2000/31/EC, of 8 June 2000, also known as the E-Commerce Directive (ECD). Nevertheless, taking account of the spread and growth of the electronic commerce in the last decades and the emergence of new actors in the online environment, the need for adopting a more up-to-date framework has been reinsured, leading to the imminent entry into force of the Digital Services Act (DSA) in the context of the strategy "Shaping Europe's Digital Future". The analysis undertaken throughout this study will address both, the presently applicable and prospected legal regime, in order to bring forward some existing legal and practical issues and offer an in-depth perspective, notably in the field of content filtering and removal. The current study comes at a convenient stage, since the proposal on a DSA is expected to be adopted and published in the following months in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Abstract:

The development of electronic commerce in the internal market made clear the need for a coherent and harmonised regulation at the European level. This was subsequently translated into the adoption of the Directive 2000/31/EC, of 8 June 2000, also known as the E-Commerce Directive (ECD). Nevertheless, taking account of the spread and growth of the electronic commerce in the last decades and the emergence of new actors in the online environment, the need for adopting a more up-to-date framework has been reinsured, leading to the imminent entry into force of the Digital Services Act (DSA) in the context of the strategy "Shaping Europe's Digital Future". The analysis undertaken throughout this study will address both, the presently applicable and prospected legal regime, in order to bring forward some existing legal and practical issues and offer an in-depth perspective, notably in the field of content filtering and removal. The current study comes at a convenient stage, since the proposal on a DSA is expected to be adopted and published in the following months in the Official Journal of the European Union.

Keywords

Active, automated means, DSA, ECD, filtering, illegal content, intermediary, liability, notice, online platform, online provider, proactive, remove, safe harbour, service.

Jazyk práce: English

Datum vytvoření / odevzdání či podání práce: 1. 8. 2022

Obhajoba závěrečné práce

• Obhajoba proběhla 31. 8. 2022
• Vedúci: doc. JUDr. Václav Stehlík, LL.M., Ph.D.

Palacký University Olomouc

Faculty of Law

Master programme / odbor:
International and European Law / International and European Law