EU policy makers to outline scope of data use and liability rules for driverless cars

As part of a raft of new measures it has outlined to promote the "digitisation of industry", the Commission said it intends later this year to "examine in greater detail the emerging issues of data ownership, access and re-use rules, including as regards data in an industrial context and especially data generated by sensors and other collecting devices".

It said it will also "explore the legal frameworks for autonomous systems and internet of things applications". As part of that initiative it said it would look into rules on safety and liability. Further plans to facilitate "large-scale testing in real-life environments" of such systems and applications were contained within the measures outlined.

"This is a clear indication of the Commission's desire for the EU to be a connected environment within which connected technologies such as driverless cars and smart factories can become commonplace," said Ben Gardner, an expert in autonomous vehicles technology and regulation at Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind Out-Law.com’

"However, in order to enable such connected technologies to be adequately tested, developed and commercialised, current regulatory frameworks surrounding, amongst other things, the collection, processing and storage of data need to be reviewed and brought in line with current technological developments," he said.

"With the likes of the US and China looking to create environments within which driverless cars can be tested, the European Commission needs to expedite its efforts in this area in order to ensure that member states within the EU are considered attractive places to test, develop and commercialise current and future connected technologies," said Gardner.

The Commission also said it plans to tackle "unjustified" rules that require data to be stored locally within an EU country.

"Data often remains stuck in national expensive data centres," the Commission said. "Unnecessary restrictions should be removed and national systems better aligned to allow a better flow of data within the EU and to stimulate the development of new technologies such as cloud computing. The Commission will assess the different legal and technical obstacles and will then define measures to address them."

Plans to pool research data and data storage and processing power from across the EU were also unveiled by the Commission.

The European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) will offer "open and seamless services for the storage, management, analysis and re-use of data" linked to research projects across Europe and different "scientific disciplines", it said.

Through the initiative the Commission said it would make the scientific data generated from projects funded by its Horizon 2020 programme available for re-use, with limited exceptions. This could include where there is "sensitiveness of certain data from domains such as security or data that are very close to market".

"Initially, the EOSC will be accessible to researchers and innovators from European universities and research institutions, and their global scientific collaborators," the Commission said. "At a later stage, as new and existing resources become available, access will be widened to research and innovation staff from the public sector and from the industry. When this happens, not all access to data will necessarily be free, as the legitimate interests of right holders need to be respected."

"The EOSC will include a system for the clearing of intellectual property rights (IPR) in relation to the access and use of specific datasets. In the long run, 'pay per use' access to valuable contents may also help ensure the sustainability of the new scientific data infrastructure," it said.

The Commission has also pledged to make it easier to comply with company law via "digital solutions".

It said: "A number of EU company rules were conceived in a pre-digital era, when every form had to be completed on paper. As a result, many companies cannot fully benefit from digital tools where it comes to fulfilling company law requirements or interacting with business registers because many of the rules and processes are still paper-based."

"The Commission will work on ways to achieve simpler and less burdensome solutions for companies, by facilitating the use of digital solutions throughout a company's lifecycle in the interaction between companies and business registers, including in cross-border situations. For instance, in order to set up as a company in a member state, it is necessary to register that company in a business register. The Commission will look at how and in what ways online registration procedures could be made available in order to reduce the administrative burden and costs of founding a new company," it said.[A1] 

Focus will also be given to the development of new standards for 5G communications, cloud computing, the internet of things, big data technologies and cybersecurity, it said.