DIGITAL LIFE

Is net neutrality at risk in Europe? organizations warn of the Impact of the digital networks act

In a statement, a group of organizations condemns two aspects of the proposal presented by the European Commission for the Digital Networks Act, pointing to risks to net neutrality and asking legislators to review it.

At the beginning of the year, the European Commission presented the Digital Networks Act (DNA) proposal with the aim of revising the rules of the telecommunications sector. At the time, industry opinions were divided and now, in a joint statement, a group of organizations expresses its concerns about the effects of the proposal on net neutrality.

As explained by the Portuguese chapter of the Internet Society (ISOC Portugal), which is part of the group of organizations represented, the joint statement specifically condemns two aspects of the proposal presented by the European Commission for the DNA.

On the one hand, the statement warns of the possibility that the proposed framework could open the door to mechanisms for intervention in the internet network interconnection market, including "Sender Pays" type models, in which digital platforms and services could bear additional costs for the traffic generated.

ISOC Portugal points out that the introduction of these mechanisms was already proposed by the European Commission about three years ago, and was publicly condemned.

On the other hand, the organizations express concern about the introduction of new rules on net neutrality, replacing the current European regulation, which defends and imposes the principle of "Net Neutrality".

"This is an attempt to create regulatory chaos that invalidates the principle of 'Net Neutrality' currently enshrined in European regulation," they argue.

In the statement, the organizations consider that, given the significant impact on the European digital ecosystem, the proposals of the European Commission "raise serious questions about their proportionality and necessity," risking "weakening fundamental safeguards that protect European consumers and businesses," including SMEs and startups, while "harming the digital single market."

The organizations are calling on the European Union co-legislators to amend the proposal to ensure a telecommunications regulatory framework that is "clear and evidence-based, maintaining and protecting net neutrality," arguing that the final version of the DNA should promote "innovation, fair competition and consumer protection, while preserving an open Internet."

"We've lost the internet"... "Currently it's impossible" to store data entirely in Europe, because European cyber defenses are dependent on cooperation with American private companies, says the director of the Belgian Cybersecurity Center

European digital infrastructure is losing ground to the United States, which may be getting closer and closer to dominating the internet empire.

"We've lost the entire cloud. Let's be honest, we've lost the internet." This is the understanding of Miguel De Bruycker, director of the Belgian Cybersecurity Center (CCB), who warns of a "huge security problem" for the European Union.

In statements to the Financial Times, he explained that it is increasingly less "realistic," and even "impossible," to imagine that our information can remain "100% in the EU," since Europe's cyber defenses are dependent on the cooperation of private companies - most of them American. "In cyberspace, everything is commercial, everything is private property," he stressed.

According to the director of the CCB, the US's progress has been ensured by innovation and the development of "crucial" technologies such as cloud computing and Artificial Intelligence, essential in combating cyberattacks.

De Bruycker points to legislation as part of the problem, accusing it of "blocking" innovation. This is the case with the European Artificial Intelligence Act, he notes, designed to regulate the development of this technology and guarantee the "transparency and security" of systems in the market.

While reiterating the continent's concern regarding American dependence, the director calls for reflection on a possible "technological sovereignty" for Europe. "I think that, at the EU level, we should clearly identify what sovereignty in the digital domain means for us," De Bruycker told the newspaper, adding that, "instead of focusing on how we can stop the US 'hyperscalers' [the large cloud computing providers], perhaps we should invest our energy in building something for ourselves."

To that end, it is up to European governments to support private initiatives to gain traction in areas such as cloud computing or digital identification technologies, argued the director of the CCB, recalling the time when Europe united in a similar initiative to manufacture Airbus aircraft: “Everyone supported Airbus initiatives for decades. We need the same initiative at the EU level in the cyber domain.”

Although there has been an undeniable increase in attacks, De Bruycker does not consider them particularly harmful, admitting that they mainly serve to cause disruption. “It’s temporary and doesn’t steal any information. In fact, it disrupts the normal functioning of the website or portal,” says the expert.

Despite the dependence that worries Europeans, De Bruycker acknowledges the importance of American “hyperscalers” in combating the Russian cyber offensive and expressed hope regarding continued cooperation with American companies.

Sapotek-Portugal