Eagle Alpha's Legal Wrap: 20th November
Eagle Alpha rounds up some of the most relevant legal and compliance articles surrounding the alternative data space over the past week.
Ear to the Ground:
With the White House changing hands in January, the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission are preparing for significant issues with big implications for the technology and entertainment industry. This includes antitrust, privacy, net neutrality, legal immunity for internet platforms and media-cross ownership. You can view the article here.
China’s State Administration for Market Regulations (SMAR) will seek public feedback on the drafted rules targeting “monopolistic practices”. This includes price discrimination, preferential treatment for online merchants, and collection of user data. Currently, Baidu, Alibaba, and Tencent control their respective markets. You can view the article here.
Google has announced that Gmail users will now be able to opt-out of “smart” features that use personal data to improve their experience via a single setting on the site. The addition of this feature comes at a time where US and EU regulators are watching tech giants closely, but Google hopes that this will reassure them that they offer genuine user choice around processing user data. You can view the article here.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) has published a consultation paper on draft guidelines on obligations relating to market data under MiFID and MiFIR. These guidelines aim to ensure common and consistent application of several MiFID and MiFIR articles while also providing a uniform understanding of financial market participants. You can view the article here.
NOYB, an Austrian privacy advocacy group, has filed a complaint with the German and Spanish data protection watchdogs accusing Apple of illegally tracking consumer’s store data without consent. Apple has directly denied these claims saying they were “factually inaccurate and we look forward to making that clear to privacy regulators should they examine the complaint”. You can view the article here.
New EU draft rules are stating that businesses will have to take on stricter encryption practices to ensure the security of personal data gathered in Europe and transferred to the US and other countries. Experts say that this move towards increased regulation will boost new methods of data encryption and curb the transfer of data to third-party countries. You can view the article here.
Changes to the EU’s legal framework for digital markets, including the Digital Service Act (DSA) package, that will be published in December, aims to modify targeted advertising. It will provide new obligations on how service providers can advertise via their digital platforms by enabling users to be in more control of what they see online. Will the continued regulation make it harder for companies to use personal data to advertise goods and services? You can view the article here.
Ping Identity launched a consumer data right integration kit to support banking and fintech compliance with Australian regulation. Under Consumer Data Rights (CDR) rules, financial institutions must provide customers with greater access and control of their data. The aim is to make it easier for consumers to switch between products and services, and to encourage more innovation and competition amongst service providers. You can view the article here.
The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (Central Bank of the Philippines) and The Monetary Authority of Singapore have both agreed to commit to promoting data connectivity across borders. The joint commitment aims to support economic growth, innovative financial services, risk management and compliance. You can view the article here.