EU legislators decline to alter texts in DMA related to data combination and usage

EU legislators have rejected changes to the Digital Markets Act regarding data combination and usage. Concerns were raised over the wording of Article 5(1)a potentially allowing Big Tech companies to combine user data without explicit consent. Stakeholders worry this could impact regulations on tracking capacity. However, legislators argue that the existing GDPR already addresses this issue, making additional changes unnecessary.

Stakeholders such as civic groups and privacy leaders fear that the wording of Article 5(1)a of the pending Digital Markets Act (DMA) might defeat the purpose of regulating Big Tech companies’ tracking capacity. One key issue under the DMA is the obligation for gatekeepers to ask for explicit user consent on whether and how their personal data could be combined and used. Article 5(1)a, argued in an open letter led by the Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL), creates ambiguity and might enable gatekeepers to bundle many data tracking questions into one consent button for users. The alternative is for gatekeepers to ask for explicit consent for each processing purpose. The EU legislators responded that such a change of Article 5(1) is redundant as the DMA is built on the consent spelt out in the GDPR, which already took care of this issue.

Source: Euractiv