EU adopts single-market digital strategy.

• Position: E-BUSINESS - European Union

Europe cannot be at the forefront of the digital revolution with a patchwork of 28 different rules for telecommunications services, copyright, IT security and data protection," Commissioner for the Digital Economy and Society Gunther H. Oettinger said recently. The European Commission (EC) agreed, and has made it a priority to eliminate barriers by implementing a Digital Single Market strategy. The EC set out the main areas where it will focus its work:

* Providing better access to digital goods and services

* Shaping the environment for digital networks and services to flourish

* Creating a European digital economy with long-term growth potential Providing better access requires facilitating cross-border e-commerce; eliminating the discrimination resulting from geoblocking, which is denying use of online services based on geography; and modernizing copyright law to balance content creators' rights with users' rights.

The EC said value-added tax (VAT) arrangements also must be simplified to boost cross-border activities of businesses, especially small and mid-size organizations. The EC estimates that VAT-related costs due to different requirements are 80 billion [euro] (about $87 billion U.S.).

Creating an environment in which digital networks and services can thrive calls for a greater investment in infrastructure. To encourage that investment, the EC will update telecommunications and media rules to ensure they can accommodate...