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European Union Information Technology Law

compiled and edited by Prof. Dr. Siegfried Fina
 Director, Vienna Technology Law Program, University of Vienna School of Law
Director, Center for European Union Law, Business Law and Technology Law, Danube University Krems

Computer crime and networksecurity

  • Council Recommendation 98/560/EC of 24 September 1998 on the development of the competitiveness of the European audiovisual and information services industry by promoting national frameworks aimed at achieving a comparable and effective level of protection of minors and human dignity, [1998] OJ L 270/48
  • Regulation (EC) No 460/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 10 March 2004 establishing the European Network and Information Security Agency, [2004] OJ L 77/1
  • Council Framework Decision 2005/222/JHA of 24 February 2005 on attacks against information systems, [2005] OJ L 69/67

Consumer protection and distance selling

  • Commission Recommendation 92/295/EEC of 7 April 1992 on codes of practice for the protection of consumers in respect of contracts negotiated at a distance (distance selling), [1992] OJ L 156/21
  • Directive 97/7/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 May 1997 on the protection of consumers in respect of distance contracts [European Distance Selling Directive],  [1997] OJ 144/19 as amended, also amended by [2005] OJ 149/22
  • Directive 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 September 2002 concerning the distance marketing of consumer financial services and amending Council Directive 90/619/EEC and Directives 97/7/EC and 98/27/EC [European Financial Services Distance Selling Directive], [2002] OJ L 271/16, amended by [2005] OJ 149/22
  • Directive 2005/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 May 2005 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices in the internal market and amending Council Directive 84/450/EEC, Directives 97/7/EC, 98/27/EC and 2002/65/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council and Regulation (EC) No 2006/2004 of the European Parliament and of the Council (Unfair Commercial Practices Directive), [2005] OJ L 149/22

Domain names

  • Regulation (EC) No 733/2002 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 April 2002 on the implementation of the .eu Top Level Domain [European .eu Regulation], [2002] OJ L 113/1
    • Commission Decision 2003/375/EC of 21 May 2003 on the designation of the .eu Top Level Domain Registry [European Commission .eu Registry Decision], [2003] OJ L 128/29
    • Commission Regulation (EC) No 874/2004 laying down public policy rules concerning the implementation and functions of the .eu Top Level Domain and the principles governing registration, [2004] OJ L 162/40, amended by [2005] OJ L 266/35

E-commerce: certain legal aspects

  • Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 8 June 2000 on certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market (Directive on electronic commerce) [European E-Commerce Directive], [2000] OJ L 178/1
    • Commission Decision 2005/752/EC of 24 October 2005 establishing an expert group on electronic commerce, [2005] OJ L 282/20

E-money

  • Directive 2000/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 September 2000 on the taking up, pursuit of and prudential supervision of the business of electronic money institutions [European E-Money Directive], [2000] OJ L 275/39

E-signatures and encryption (cryptography)

  • Directive 1999/93/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 1999 on a Community framework for electronic signatures [European E-Signatures Directive], [2000] OJ 13/12
    • Commission Decision 2000/709/EC of 6 November 2000 on the minimum criteria to be taken into account by Member States when designating bodies in accordance with Article 3(4) of Directive 1999/93/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Community framework for electronic signatures, [2000] OJ L 289/42
    • Commission Decision 2003/511/EC of 14 July 2003 on the publication of reference numbers of generally recognised standards for electronic signature products in accordance with Directive 1999/93/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, [2003] OJ L 175/45

Environmental aspects of information technology

  • Directive 2002/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 on the restriction of the use of certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment, [2002] OJ L 37/19, amended by [2005] OJ L 214/65, [2005] OJ L 271/48
  • Directive 2002/96/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 January 2003 on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), [2003] OJ L 37/24 as amended
    • Commission Decision 2004/249/EC of 11 March 2004 concerning a questionnaire for Member States reports on the implementation of Directive 2002/96/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), [2004] OJ L 78/56
    • Council Decision 2004/312/EC of 30 March 2004 granting the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Slovenia certain temporary derogations from Directive 2002/96/EC on waste electrical and electronic equipment, [2004] OJ L 100/33
    • Council Decision 2004/486/EC of 26 April 2004 granting Cyprus, Malta and Poland certain temporary derogations from Directive 2002/96/EC on waste electrical and electronic equipment, [2004] OJ L 162/114
    • Commission Decision 2005/369/EC of 3 May 2005 laying down rules for monitoring compliance of Member States and establishing data formats for the purposes of Directive 2002/96/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on waste electrical and electronic equipment, [2005] OJ L 119/13
  • Commission Decision 2005/341/EC of 11 April 2005 establishing ecological criteria and the related assessment and verification requirements for the award of the Community eco-label to personal computers, [2005] OJ L 115/1
  • Commission Decision 2005/343/EC of 11 April 2005 establishing ecological criteria and the related assessment and verification requirements for the award of the Community eco-label to portable computers, [2005] OJ L 115/35
  • Directive 2005/32/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 6 July 2005 establishing a framework for the setting of ecodesign requirements for energy-using products and amending Council Directive 92/42/EEC and Directives 96/57/EC and 2000/55/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, [2005] OJ L 191/29

Intellectual property law and information technology

  • Council Directive 87/54/EEC of 16 December 1986 on the legal protection of topographies of semiconductor products [European Semiconductor Directive], [1987] OJ L 24/36
    • Council Decision 93/16/EEC of 21 December 1992 on the extension of the legal protection of topographies of semiconductor products to persons from the United States of America and certain territories, [1993] OJ L 11/20 as amended
    • Council Decision 94/700/EC of 24 October 1994 on the extension of the legal protection of topographies of semiconductor products to persons from Canada, [1994] OJ L 284/61
    • Council Decision 94/824/EC of 22 December 1994 on the extension of the legal protection of topographies of semiconductor products to persons from a Member of the World Trade Organization, [1994] OJ L 349/201
    • Council Decision 96/644/EC of 11 November 1996 on the extension of the legal protection of topographies of semiconductor products to persons from the Isle of Man, [1996] OJ L 293/18
  • Council Directive 91/250/EEC of 14 May 1991 on the legal protection of computer programs [European Software Copyright Directive], [1991] OJ L 122/42 as amended
  • Council Directive 93/83/EEC of 27 September 1993 on the coordination of certain rules concerning copyright and rights related to copyright applicable to satellite broadcasting and cable retransmission [European Satellite and Cable Copyright Directive], [1993] OJ L 248/15
  • Directive 96/9/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 1996 on the legal protection of databases [European Database Directive], [1996] OJ L 77/20
    • Council Decision 2003/239/EC of 18 February 2003 on the conclusion of an Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on behalf of the Isle of Man and the European Community extending to the Isle of Man the legal protection of databases as provided for in Chapter III of Directive 96/9/EC, [2003] OJ L 89/11
      • Agreement in the form of an Exchange of Letters between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland on behalf of the Isle of Man and the European Community extending to the Isle of Man the legal protection of databases as provided for in Chapter III of Directive 96/9/EC, [2003] OJ L 89/12
  • Directive 98/84/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 November 1998 on the legal protection of services based on, or consisting of, conditional access [European Conditional Access Directive], [1998] OJ L 320/54
  • Council Decision 2000/278/EC of 16 March 2000 on the approval, on behalf of the European Community, of the WIPO Copyright Treaty and the WIPO Performances and Phonograms Treaty, [2000] OJ L 89/6
  • Directive 2001/29/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2001 on the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society [European Information Society Copyright Directive], [2001] OJ L 167/10 as amended
  • Commission Regulation (EC) No 772/2004 of 27 April 2004 on the application of Article 81(3) of the Treaty to categories of technology transfer agreements [European Technology Transfer Regulation], [2004] OJ L 123/11
  • Commission Recommendation 2005/737/EC of 18 October 2005 on collective cross-border management of copyright and related rights for legitimate online music services, [2005] OJ L 276/54, corrected by [2005] OJ L 284/10

Jurisdiction and applicable law

  • Council Regulation (EC) No 44/2001 of 22 December 2000 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters [European Jurisdiction and Enforcement Regulation], [2001] OJ L 12/1 as amended
    • Council Decision 2006/325/EC of 27 April 2006 concerning the conclusion of the Agreement between the European Community and the Kingdom of Denmark on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters, [2006] OJ L 120/22
  • Convention 88/592/EEC on jurisdiction and the enforcement of judgments in civil and commercial matters - Done at Lugano on 16 September 1988, [1988] OJ L 319/9
  • 1980 Rome Convention on the law applicable to contractual obligations, [1980] OJ L 266/1, [2005] OJ C 334/1 (consolidated version)

Privacy/data protection

  • Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 24 October 1995 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data [European Data Protection Directive], [1995] OJ L 281/31 as amended
    • Commission Decision 2001/497/EC of 15 June 2001 on standard contractual clauses for the transfer of personal data to third countries, under Directive 95/46/EC, [2001] OJ L 181/19 as amended, also amended by [2004] OJ L 385/74
    • Commission Decision 2002/16/EC of 27 December 2001 on standard contractual clauses for the transfer of personal data to processors established in third countries, under Directive 95/46/EC, [2002] OJ L 6/52
    • Commission Decision 2000/518/EC of 26 July 2000 pursuant to Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the adequate protection of personal data provided in Switzerland, [2000] OJ L 215/1
    • Commission Decision 2000/519/EC of 26 July 2000 pursuant to Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the adequate protection of personal data provided in Hungary, [2000] OJ L 215/4
    • Commission Decision 2000/520/EC of 26 July 2000 pursuant to Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the adequacy of the protection provided by the safe harbour privacy principles and related frequently asked questions issued by the US Department of Commerce, [2000] OJ L 215/7
    • Commission Decision 2002/2/EC of 20 December 2001 pursuant to Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the adequate protection of personal data provided by the Canadian Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, [2002] OJ L 2/13
    • Commission Decision 2003/490/EC of 30 June 2003 pursuant to Directive 95/46/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on the adequate protection of personal data in Argentina, [2003] OJ L 168/19
    • Commission Decision 2003/821/EC of 21 November 2003 on the adequate protection of personal data in Guernsey, [2003] OJ L 308/27
  • Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data, [2001] OJ L 8/1
    • Council Decision 2004/644/EC of 13 September 2004 adopting implementing rules concerning Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data, [2004] OJ L 296/16
    • European Parliament Implementing rules relating to Regulation (EC) No 45/2001 of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data by the Community institutions and bodies and on the free movement of such data - Bureau decision of 22 June 2005, [2005] OJ C 308/1
  • Directive 2002/58/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2002 concerning the processing of personal data and the protection of privacy in the electronic communications sector (Directive on privacy and electronic communications), [2002] OJ L 201/37, amended by [2006] OJ L 105/54
  • Directive 2006/24/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 15 March 2006 on the retention of data generated or processed in connection with the provision of publicly available electronic communications services or of public communications networks and amending Directive 2002/58/EC, [2006] OJ L 105/54

Protection of employees and information technology

  • Council Directive 90/270/EEC of 29 May 1990 on the minimum safety and health requirements for work with display screen equipment [European Display Screen Directive], [1990] OJ L 156/14

Taxation/customs duties and information technology

  • Council Directive 1999/59/EC of 17 June 1999 amending Directive 77/388/EEC as regards the value added tax arrangements applicable to telecommunications services, [1999] L 162/63
  • Council Directive 2001/115/EC of 20 December 2001 amending Directive 77/388/EEC with a view to simplifying, modernising and harmonising the conditions laid down for invoicing in respect of value added tax [European E-invoicing Directive], [2002] OJ L 15/24
  • Council Directive 2002/38/EC of 7 May 2002 amending and amending temporarily Directive 77/388/EEC as regards the value added tax arrangements applicable to radio and television broadcasting services and certain electronically supplied services, [2002] L 128/41
  • Council Regulation (EC) No 1798/2003 of 7 October 2003 on administrative cooperation in the field of value added tax and repealing Regulation (EEC) No 218/92, [2003] OJ L 264/1
  • Council Decision 2005/964/EC of 21 December 2005 on the conclusion, on behalf of the European Community, of the Agreement on Duty-Free Treatment of Multi-Chip Integrated Circuits (MCPs), [2005] OJ L 349/24
    • Agreement on Duty-Free Treatment of Multi-Chip Integrated Circuits (MCPs), [2005] OJ L 349/25

Telecommunications regulatory framework: key legislation

  • Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on a common regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services (Framework Directive), [2002] L 108/33
    • Commission Recommendation 2003/311/EC of 11 February 2003 on relevant product and service markets within the electronic communications sector susceptible to ex ante regulation in accordance with Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on a common regulatory framework for electronic communication networks and services, [2003] OJ L 114/45
    • Recommendation of the EFTA Surveillance Authority No 194/04/COL of 14 July 2004 on relevant product and service markets within the electronic communications sector susceptible to ex ante regulation in accordance with Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on a common regulatory framework for electronic communication networks and services, as incorporated into the Agreement on the European Economic Area, [2006] OJ L 113/18
    • Commission Recommendation 2003/561/EC of 23 July 2003 on notifications, time limits and consultations provided for in Article 7 of Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on a common regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services, [2003] OJ L 190/13
    • Recommendation of the EFTA Surveillance Authority No 193/04/COL of 14 July 2004 on notifications, time limits and consultations provided for in Article 7 of Directive 2002/21/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on a common regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services, [2006] OJ L 113/10
    • Commission Recommendation 2005/268/EC of 29 March 2005 on the provision of leased lines in the European Union - Part 2 - pricing aspects of wholesale leased lines part circuits, [2005] OJ L 83/52
    • Commission Recommendation 2005/292/EC of 6 April 2005 on broadband electronic communications through powerlines, [2005] OJ L 93/42
    • Commission Recommendation 2005/698/EC of 19 September 2005 on accounting separation and cost accounting systems under the regulatory framework for electronic communications, [2005] OJ L 266/64
    • EFTA Surveillance Authority guidelines of 14 July 2004 on market analysis and the assessment of significant market power under the regulatory framework for electronic communications networks and services referred to in Annex XI of the Agreement on the European Economic Area, [2006] OJ C 101/1
  • Directive 2002/19/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on access to, and interconnection of, electronic communications networks and associated facilities (Access Directive), [2002] OJ L 108/7
  • Directive 2002/20/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on the authorisation of electronic communications networks and services (Authorisation Directive), [2002] OJ L 108/21
  • Directive 2002/22/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 7 March 2002 on universal service and users' rights relating to electronic communications networks and services (Universal Service Directive), [2002] OJ L 108/51
  • Commission Decision 2002/627/EC of 29 July 2002 establishing the European Regulators Group for Electronic Communications Networks and Services, [2002] OJ L 200/38
  • Commission Recommendation 2000/417/EC of 25 May 2000 on unbundled access to the local loop: enabling the competitive provision of a full range of electronic communications services including broadband multimedia and high-speed Internet, [2000] OJ L 156/44
  • Regulation (EC) No 2887/2000 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2000 on unbundled access to the local loop, [2000] OJ L 336/4
  • Commission Directive 2002/77/EC of 16 September 2002 on competition in the markets for electronic communications networks and services, [2002] OJ L 249/21

Transparency of rules on information society services

  • Directive 98/34/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 June 1998 laying down a procedure for the provision of information in the field of technical standards and regulations and of rules on Information Society services [European Transparency Directive], [1998] OJ L 204/37 as amended
  • Council Decision 2003/840/EC of 17 November 2003 relating to the conclusion on behalf of the European Community of Council of Europe Convention No 180 on information and legal cooperation on information society services, [2003] OJ L 321/41
    • Council of Europe Convention No 180 on information and legal cooperation on information society services, [2003] OJ L 321/43