On Wednesday (February 23), local time, the European Union unveiled a new legislative proposal that will force tech giants such as Amazon, Microsoft or Tesla to share more data, and will also loosen controls on certain commercial and industrial data.
The European Commission has unveiled a proposal called the Data Act, which aims to help smaller companies catch up with larger companies in the competition, profiting from non-personal data generated by connected products such as smart appliances to cars. Non-personal data refers to data that does not contain any personally identifiable information.
EU officials say their goal in enacting the new law is to help open up more data markets by forcing businesses to reach data-sharing agreements that allow consumers to choose between competing service providers when using connected devices. Many of the terms don't just apply to big tech companies.
At the same time, officials also cite the fact that consumers clearly want to send data generated by smart dishwashers or cars to third-party repair service agencies rather than manufacturers, which can help users get cheaper services. Factory owners want to share the information collected by the robot with third-party companies to help optimize its performance.
Margrethe Vestager, the European Commission's head of competition, said in a statement on Wednesday: "We want to ensure that the distribution of value created by data is more equitable." From smart hands to connected cars, we are buying more and more data for the products we buy, and it is currently the manufacturers of these products who hold and use the data. We want to give consumers and companies more control over what their data can do. ”
The proposal will now be submitted to EU countries and the European Parliament for approval, but it could take years to come into force. But the proposal also worries many companies. According to the proposal, even a super-large tech company like Google is unlikely to benefit from simplified data transfers.