|
The
Centre for the Study of European Contract Law
(CSECL) and the Institute for
Information Law (IViR) have won a European tender for a
joint research project concerning 'the legal framework
for digital content services for consumers'. The project
has been assigned by the Executive Agency for Health and
Consumers and will run for a period of approximately one
year.
The consumption of digital
content becomes and integral part of the daily life of
Europe's digital consumers of all ages, professions and
levels of experience. More and more digital services
serve consumers' demand for information, education,
entertainment and communication: music downloads, online
gaming, online publishing and the purchase of e-books,
subscription to podcasts, webcast and streaming
services, network sites like Facebook, et cetera.
However, what is the legal position of the digital
consumer in the event that anything goes wrong: videos
that won't play, ebooks that cannot be copied, pieces of
music that collect personal information about the
consumer? The regulation of these services raises many
questions. How can consumer interests be protected on
the market for online content services? Are consumer
protection rules regarding offline services equally
applicable to digital services online, or is there a
need for additional (European) legislation? With the
help of a network of international experts, CSECL and
IViR researchers will draft a wide-ranging
legal-comparative report on the topic and will present
policy recommendations of how to guarantee consumers an
adequate level of legal protection when purchasing
digital services online.
The research project
will be coordinated by Marco Loos, Chantal Mak (both
CSECL), Bernt Hugenholtz and
Natali Helberger (both
IViR).
|
