Hi all! February has been a busy month. Age verification is still a hot topic, with a veritable race between EU Member States to ban children from social media. Meanwhile Wikimedia submitted public feedback on the Digital Omnibus and the Open Digital Ecosystem Strategy. Finally, the DEM-Debate research project wrapped up with a final event in the European Parliament.
=== Digital Omnibus === Last month we introduced you to two digital omnibus proposals — a general one <https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/digital-omnibus-regulation-proposal%3E> and an AI one <https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/digital-omnibus-ai-regulation-proposal>. The European Parliament is working fast. Amendment ideas are being discussed, with committee and plenary votes expected in March. The Council is also moving quickly, especially, on the AI omnibus. — Wikimedia Europe submitted its feedback <https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/14855-Simplification-digital-package-and-omnibus/F33375405_en> on the general omnibus. Our submission focuses on two sticking points: changes to the GDPR and to the rules on re-use of open government data. We remark that changes to the definition of personal data are fundamental and require proper assessment (which was skipped). On the other hand we welcome the so-called privacy signal system (i.e. instead of cookie banners you set your cookie preferences in the browser). On the public sector data side, we warn against the drawbacks of the proposed differentiated pricing, as it would be incompatible with standard free licences. This is also something we jointly argue together with Creative Commons and Communia <https://communia-association.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/One-pager-Digital-Omnibus.pdf>. — For a human-readable version of the arguments you may also revisit our blog post <https://wikimedia.brussels/editorial-wmeu-on-the-digital-omnibus-the-russmedia-decision/> . === Priorities of DG CNCT === The Commission’s digital directorate is prioritising a DSA delegated act on calculating supervisory fees for VLOPs over the one on calculating users. This is following the General Court's September 2025 ruling <https://www.lawsociety.ie/gazette/top-stories/2025/september/eu-court-annuls-decision-on-dsa-fees/> in which it sided with Meta and TikTok in their challenge to these fees. This is of importance to the Wikimedia Foundation, as Wikipedia is designated as a VLOP. === Consultation on Open Digital Ecosystems === The European Commission's call for evidence on the Open Digital Ecosystem Strategy <https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/news/commission-opens-call-evidence-open-source-digital-ecosystems> has closed. The Wikimedia Foundation submitted feedback <https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/16213-European-Open-Digital-Ecosystems/F33370650_en>, highlighting how Wikimedia projects are built on open source technologies and constitute a critical part of the digital public infrastructure ecosystem. — The consultation attracted over 1,600 responses — an unusually high number for this kind of exercise that is not directly tied to legislation. Open Future has published a useful analysis <https://openfuture.eu/blog/european-open-digital-ecosystems-and-digital-commons/> of the full set of responses. Recurring themes include calls for an EU-level Sovereign Tech Fund to provide sustained investment in open source infrastructure, support for treating open source as a commons rather than merely a licensing question, and a push to use public procurement as a strategic lever. === Data Retention === A case to watch <https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ:C_202600937>: the Court of Justice of the EU has received a preliminary reference from a Polish court in Gdańsk asking whether a national law obliging electronic communications providers to retain traffic and location data for 12 months is compatible with EU law — specifically the ePrivacy Directive and the Charter of Fundamental Rights. — The outcome will be important for any future data retention legislation. The Commission is expected to make a proposal in that domain this year. The CJEU has pushed back against blanket data retention in the past. Any decision on this is important, as the Wikimedia Foundation tries to gather as little user data as possible. === Age Verification === After France, Spain, Italy, Denmark (just to name check a zealous few), Germany is ready to jump <https://www.faz.net/aktuell/politik/inland/die-spd-stiehlt-der-cdu-die-social-media-show-110838365.html> on the “social media ban for kids” train. Two of the three ruling parties have recently announced such intentions. The Social Democrats (SPD) want a ban for everyone under 14, and beyond that additional rules for 14-16 year olds. The Christian Democrats (CDU), the main center right party, also came out in favour of a social media ban for children. They have at least given up on their idea for anti-anonymity measures. The smallest governing coalition partner, the Bavarian CSU (CDU’s counterpart in that state) meanwhile opposes the idea <https://www.deutschlandfunk.de/csu-geht-auf-distanz-zu-social-media-verbotsplaenen-von-cdu-und-spd-100.html> and says that it is the wrong solution to the problem at hand. — On the EU level, a panel of experts advising Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on online age verification is getting started. It is expected to come up with a report before summer, according to digital Vice-President Virkkunen. It is also expected that the Commission will use this report as a stepping stone for further actions - legislative or not. A number of Member States and stakeholders are still hoping to see an EU-wide approach to social media restrictions for minors. — For Wikimedia projects it is important that the definition of social media doesn’t cover them, to avoid obstacles to free access to knowledge. === DEM-Debate Project: Final Event === On February 24, the DEM-Debate research project partners – Wikimedia Europe, the University of Amsterdam and Eurecat - Centre Tecnològic de Catalunya – gathered at the European Parliament in Brussels for the final event of the DEM-Debate <https://wikimedia.brussels/building-an-enabling-environment-for-democratic-debate-the-dem-debate-project/> initiative. Over the course of a year and half researchers looked into content moderation on Wikipedia during the 2024 European Parliament elections. You can discover the deliverables <https://wikimedia.brussels/building-an-enabling-environment-for-democratic-debate-the-dem-debate-project/>, watch the video <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:DEM-Debate_Final_Event_at_the_European_Parliament.webm> or read the blog post <https://wikimedia.brussels/the-dem-debate-project-came-to-an-end-the-final-event/> . === Danish Copyright & Personal Characteristics === Denmark is working on a bill that extends copyright protections to personal characteristics, such as voices and faces. It includes a protection against the sharing of realistic digitally generated imitations of people’s personal characteristics. In parallel, there is a second protection for performers and artists against the sharing of realistic digitally generated imitations of their performances. — Wikimedia Denmark has participated in the public consultation <https://dk.wikimedia.org/wiki/H%C3%B8ring/H%C3%B8ring_over_forslag_til_lov_om_%C3%A6ndring_af_lov_om_ophavsret_(Indf%C3%B8relse_af_en_pr%C3%A6stationsbeskyttelse_og_beskyttelse_mod_digitalt_genererede_efterligninger_mv.)>, pointing out that the exceptions and limitations foreseen in the draft proposal would be insufficient to protect all current users on Wikimedia projects. — Meanwhile, the European Commission is not amused <https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zEgjozhFe9S3KFmyWgXrL8sNVAPne3DH/view?usp=sharing>. It sent a letter stating it does not like the Danish effort to protect personal traits by using copyright. It “invites the Danish authorities to consider using other instruments, other than copyright legislation, to reach the aimed protection of personal characteristics”. === Wikipedia's 25th Birthday === Yes, we are celebrating in Brussels and you are invited to join us! 18 March, from 18:00 at Ateliers des Tanneurs. Please register <https://wikimedia.brussels/wikipedia-25-party-invitation/>. ===END=== -- Wikimedia Europe ivzw
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