Seeing growing interest from our clients to stay ahead of market trends and prepare for upcoming legislation changes on a local and EU level, we have compiled a regional TMT newsletter to share relevant sector trends, updates in legislation, know-how, and more with our network.
Below you can find our quarterly TMT newsletter, covering the latest updates about the implementation of the European Electronic Communications Code in the Baltic countries, practical implications of the metaverse, open-source software compliance and 5G license auctions.
TMT Insights
Sorainen Business Talks: Welcome to the Metaverse
On 7 September 2022, Sorainen hosted an online event taking on one of the most exciting, confusing and suspicious-sounding current topics: the metaverse. Is the metaverse the next big thing that will change all our lives? How is Apple’s approach to the metaverse different? Should we invest NOW, or is it just hype that will pass by, which you shouldn’t throw money at (or into)? Will Baltic companies use this opportunity to expand their businesses with the help of the new meta world?
See more here.
Don’t risk open source non-compliance
When incorporating open source components into proprietary software, be sure to ensure that you have the necessary rights to use your code as you intend to use it. Our specialists explain how.
Read more here.
Attract investments by ensuring your intellectual property is in order
What are the things investors and their lawyers scrutinise in terms of startups’ intellectual property before investing? In our webinar, we discussed the most critical issues to consider to ensure that a startup is fully equipped to enter the fundraising process without any hiccups.
See more here.
The Financial Times recognises Sorainen for its innovations: nominated for awards in four categories
Sorainen was shortlisted in four categories in The Financial Times’ Innovative Lawyers Awards Europe 2022, this being the highest number of nominations of any law firm from the Baltic or Nordic regions.
Read more here.
EU Legislation
EU’s proposed Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act: targeting gatekeeper online platforms and online intermediary service providers
The DMA and DSA are intended to protect the fundamental rights of online service users, establish a fair and innovative business field for online service providers, limit the market power of big online platforms, and regulate the digital market to make it safer, fairer and more competitive.
Read more here.
EU’s AI Liability Directive: easier access to redress in relation to damages caused by AI systems
The proposed new rules will, for instance, make it easier to obtain compensation if someone has been discriminated in a recruitment process involving AI technology.
Read more here.
EU reaches agreement on the crypto-assets regulation
According to the proposed regulation, crypto-asset service providers become liable in case they lose investors’ crypto-assets due to hacks or operational failures that they could have prevented and actors in the crypto-assets market will be required to declare information on their environmental and climate footprint. You can access the proposal here. The final text of the regulation is currently being finalised.
Read more here.
Data protection
Supervisory authorities of the Baltic States launched a coordinated inspection of the compliance of personal data processing in the field of short-term vehicle rental
The authorities have agreed that supervision will be carried out on enterprises offering the rental of short-term vehicles, including electric scooters, whose main recipients of services are natural persons. These supervision actions aim to monitor the compliance of the application of the GDPR and to proactively address potential threats to citizens’ personal data, the importance of which has increased rapidly in the daily lives of many citizens over the last three years.
Read more here.
EDPB publishes Art. 65 GDPR dispute resolution Binding Decision
The binding decision of the European Data Protection Board (EDPB) was adopted on 15 June 2022 following a dispute between the French DPA as the lead supervisory authority, and one of the concerned supervisory authorities, namely the Polish DPA, regarding the amount of the fine against ACCOR SA, the controller, for their failure to respect the right to object to marketing activities and difficulties encountered in exercising the right of access.
The decision covers such topics as the criterion of dissuasiveness under Art. 83(1) GDPR, the impact of the turnover on the amount of fine. The EDPB underlined that the turnover already constitutes a relevant indication of the financial situation of a company. Therefore, there is no need to consider the decrease in turnover as a mitigating factor under Art. 83(2)(k) GDPR.
Read more here.
EDPB adopts guidelines on certification as a tool for transfers
On 14 June 2022, the EDPB adopted the 1st version of the guidelines on certification as a tool for transfers. The main purpose of these guidelines is to provide further clarification on the practical use of the transfer tool under Article 46(2)(f) GDPR, which introduces approved certification mechanisms to transfer personal data to third countries in the absence of an adequacy agreement.
Read more here.
Technology
Estonian health tech start-up Antegenes raises EUR 2.3 million
EIT Health-supported start-up, Antegenes, has raised EUR 2.3 million in funding to bring its innovative genetic tests for personalised cancer prevention into broader use in healthcare, scale the team and expand to new foreign markets. Funding was received from investors, Enterprise Estonia and EIT Health.
Read more here.
Cybersecurity
ENISA has created a 6-step cybersecurity threat landscape methodology
The methodology aims to provide a baseline for the transparent and systematic delivery of horizontal, thematic and sectorial cybersecurity threat landscapes.
See more here.
Telecom
Estonia launches the next 5G license competition
The Estonian regulator has announced the start of another auction for 5G frequency licenses, this time in the 694-790 MHz frequency band. A total of six 2×5 MHz frequency blocks will be auctioned. The auction is scheduled to take place in November and the starting price for each license is EUR 1 million.
Read more here.
The Baltics adopt laws implementing the European Electronics Communications Code (EECC)
Entities providing electronic communication services to users in Latvia, Estonia or Lithuania, should consider whether their services subject them to the regulatory requirements provided for in the relevant electronic communications laws.
Read more here.
