ePrivacy discussion resumes under the Romanian Presidency
The Romanian Presidency of the Council wishes to reach an agreement on the ePrivacy file within the next 5 month, and has scheduled a series of meeting of the working party on telecommunication and information society, in January where attaches from each Member States discuss the remaining open issue of the text. The opening meeting on the 10th January was the opportunity for the European Commission to reiterate the importance of closing this file as soon as possible, but also to present how the newly adopted European Electronic Communication code interact with the old ePrivacy Directive, which remain in place until the regulation is adopted and enters into force. Additionally, Attachés discussed the impact of the ePrivacy Regulation for security and defence as well as what it would mean for the fight against child pornography, as several voices including telecom operators, highlighted concerned that the privacy rules could limit their ability (and law enforcement agencies’) to actively fight in such area.
Other issues of the text remain open, such as the confidentiality of communication, browser settings and cookie walls. In addition, and despite the willingness of the Parliament and Omission, as well as of some Member States to close this file as soon as possible, other areas of the text must be reopen for thorough evaluation, such as the direct marketing provision.
