Statusrapport om e-handel
Rapport fra Kommisjonen til Rådet og Europaparlamentet: Sluttrapport om spørreundersøkelsen for e-handelssektoren
Report from the Commission to the Council and the European Parliament. Final report on the E-commerce Sector Inquiry
Rapport lagt fram av Kommisjonen 10.5.2017
Nærmere omtale
BAKGRUNN (fra kommisjonsrapporten, engelsk utgave)
INTRODUCTION
(1) On 6 May 2015, the Commission launched a sector inquiry into the electronic commerce (‘e-commerce’) of consumer goods and digital content in the EU (‘e-commerce sector inquiry’). 1 The e-commerce sector inquiry forms part of the Digital Single Market strategy adopted on the same day. 2
(2) The Digital Single Market strategy outlines several key actions under three pillars through which the Commission plans to create a ‘Digital Single Market’. One of these pillars relates to ensuring better access for consumers and businesses to goods and services via e-commerce across the EU.
(3) E-commerce in the EU has grown steadily in recent years. Today the EU is one of the largest e-commerce markets in the world. The percentage of people aged between 16 and 74 that have ordered goods or services over the internet has grown year-on-year from 30 % in 2007 to 55 % in 2016. 3
(4) The rapid development of e-commerce affects consumers and businesses alike. The e-commerce sector inquiry allowed the Commission to obtain an overview of the prevailing market trends and gather evidence on competition barriers linked to the growth of e-commerce. It also allowed the Commission to understand the prevalence of certain business practices and their underlying rationale, and ultimately to identify priorities for enforcing the EU competition rules.
(5) For the purposes of the e-commerce sector inquiry, requests for information (‘questionnaires’) were addressed to stakeholders between June 2015 and March 2016. 1 051 retailers (‘retailers’); 37 marketplaces; 89 price comparison tool providers; 17 payment system providers; 259 manufacturers; 248 digital content providers; 9 companies offering virtual private networks 4 and IP routing services; and 30 large groups and hosting operators, 5 from 28 Member States, provided responses to the questionnaires. Respondents submitted in total 2 605 agreements related to the distribution of consumer goods and 6 426 licensing agreements related to the distribution of digital content.
(6) On 15 September 2016, the Commission published a Preliminary Report 6 on the initial findings of the e-commerce sector inquiry. The publication of the Preliminary Report was followed by a public consultation open to all interested stakeholders. The public consultation ended on 18 November 2016. Altogether 66 submissions were made in relation to consumer goods and digital content. 7
(7) Interested stakeholders also expressed their views at a stakeholder conference in Brussels on 6 October 2016. The event provided representatives of different stakeholders with an opportunity to put forward their views on the Preliminary Report.
(8) This Report is accompanied by a Staff Working Document, the Final Report on the e-commerce sector inquiry (‘the Final Report’) which summarises the main findings of the e-commerce sector inquiry and incorporates comments submitted by stakeholders during the public consultation. The Final Report is divided into two separate sections: the first section covers e-commerce of consumer goods, while the second focuses on e-commerce of digital content.
INTRODUCTION
(1) On 6 May 2015, the Commission launched a sector inquiry into the electronic commerce (‘e-commerce’) of consumer goods and digital content in the EU (‘e-commerce sector inquiry’). 1 The e-commerce sector inquiry forms part of the Digital Single Market strategy adopted on the same day. 2
(2) The Digital Single Market strategy outlines several key actions under three pillars through which the Commission plans to create a ‘Digital Single Market’. One of these pillars relates to ensuring better access for consumers and businesses to goods and services via e-commerce across the EU.
(3) E-commerce in the EU has grown steadily in recent years. Today the EU is one of the largest e-commerce markets in the world. The percentage of people aged between 16 and 74 that have ordered goods or services over the internet has grown year-on-year from 30 % in 2007 to 55 % in 2016. 3
(4) The rapid development of e-commerce affects consumers and businesses alike. The e-commerce sector inquiry allowed the Commission to obtain an overview of the prevailing market trends and gather evidence on competition barriers linked to the growth of e-commerce. It also allowed the Commission to understand the prevalence of certain business practices and their underlying rationale, and ultimately to identify priorities for enforcing the EU competition rules.
(5) For the purposes of the e-commerce sector inquiry, requests for information (‘questionnaires’) were addressed to stakeholders between June 2015 and March 2016. 1 051 retailers (‘retailers’); 37 marketplaces; 89 price comparison tool providers; 17 payment system providers; 259 manufacturers; 248 digital content providers; 9 companies offering virtual private networks 4 and IP routing services; and 30 large groups and hosting operators, 5 from 28 Member States, provided responses to the questionnaires. Respondents submitted in total 2 605 agreements related to the distribution of consumer goods and 6 426 licensing agreements related to the distribution of digital content.
(6) On 15 September 2016, the Commission published a Preliminary Report 6 on the initial findings of the e-commerce sector inquiry. The publication of the Preliminary Report was followed by a public consultation open to all interested stakeholders. The public consultation ended on 18 November 2016. Altogether 66 submissions were made in relation to consumer goods and digital content. 7
(7) Interested stakeholders also expressed their views at a stakeholder conference in Brussels on 6 October 2016. The event provided representatives of different stakeholders with an opportunity to put forward their views on the Preliminary Report.
(8) This Report is accompanied by a Staff Working Document, the Final Report on the e-commerce sector inquiry (‘the Final Report’) which summarises the main findings of the e-commerce sector inquiry and incorporates comments submitted by stakeholders during the public consultation. The Final Report is divided into two separate sections: the first section covers e-commerce of consumer goods, while the second focuses on e-commerce of digital content.