The European Court of Justice rejects Italy’s e-commerce law

Brussels – the so-called European Court of Justice issued a judgment today (May 30) rejecting part of Italy’s e-commerce regulations. Luxembourg judges found that the obligation for providers of intermediation services and search engines (such as Booking, Amazon, Google, etc.) to provide more information and make financial contributions to the Italian state is contrary to European single market rules.

The ruling came after seeking clarification from an Italian judge who had to decide on an appeal filed by online platforms. The Court rejected rules adopted in 2020 and 2021 whose stated purpose was to promote fairness and transparency for users of online intermediation services. However, Luxembourg judges have ruled that all companies, including those operating solely online, have no specific obligations towards member states if they are based in an EU country. This is especially the case with all companies providing brokerage services based in Ireland or Luxembourg, so they do not have to be subject to Italian obligations. The only exception is Expedia, which is based in the United States.

The regulation provided that providers of intermediation and search engine services were to do this to enter the register kept by Agcom, provide it with a periodic document presenting its economic situation, provide a range of detailed information and make a financial contribution. However, Luxembourg judges ruled that Italy cannot impose additional obligations that are not provided for in the Member State where these service providers are established. However, once the judgment is issued, the resolution of the legal dispute rests with the Italian courts.

English version by Inhub Translation Service