Nuevo régimen de responsabilidad de los servicios digitales que actúan como intermediarios a la luz de la propuesta de Reglamento relativo a un mercado único de servicios digitales

On December 15, 2020, the European Commission presented the Proposals for Regulations on a single market for digital services (Digital Services Act) and on competitive and fair markets in the digital sector (Digital Markets Act), which modernize the regime applicable to intermediary service providers. Intermediaries are key players in the digital transformation of recent decades. Although they are constantly challenged by the power and influence that some companies (such as Google, Apple, Amazon or Facebook, to cite a few examples of big tech) wield in the digital environment, the fact is that they create countless advantages for small and medium-sized enterprises, consumers and innovation, facilitating cross-border trade in the European Union and enabling economic operators to showcase their products and services through their platforms. However, online intermediary services are often used as channels to sell illegal, counterfeit or dangerous goods, provide illegal services or disseminate illegal content on the web. Combating this misuse of digital services has been a major challenge for legislators for years. In this context, the paper addresses as a starting point the current liability regime for online intermediaries set out in the E-Commerce Directive. Secondly, although there is still a long way to go before its approval, it analyzes the proposed Regulation on a single market for digital services (Digital Services Act), and, in particular, the general aspects of the new liability framework for these intermediaries and the due diligence obligations to achieve a more transparent and secure online environment.