MoFo Tech

December 18, 2018 - European Union, Telecommunications
Hot off the press: The European Electronic Communications Code
By: Andreas Grünwald and Christoph Nüßing
Yesterday, after a legislative procedure lasting more than two years, the European Union has finally published its new “European Electronic Communications Code” (EECC). It provides updated rules for providers of traditional mobile and fixed telecoms services, establishes regulations for new online communications services and
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December 04, 2018 - Intellectual Property, European Union
IP Protection Post-Brexit: A Right-by-Right Analysis
By: Alistair Maughan, Wolfgang Schönig, Sana Ashcroft and Robert Grohmann
The United Kingdom is set to leave the European Union on 29 March 2019 (“Exit Date”). With Brexit fast approaching, on 25 November 2018 the EU and the UK announced their consensus on a withdrawal agreement that sets out the terms of the UK's
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November 19, 2018 - Artificial Intelligence, European Union
Algorithms can reduce discrimination, but only with proper data
By: Lokke Moerel
Since the advent of artificial intelligence technology, there have been countless instances of machine learning algorithms yielding discriminatory outcomes. For instance, crime prediction tools frequently assign disproportionately higher risk scores to ethnic minorities. This is not because of an error in the algorithm, but
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November 16, 2018 - Litigation, European Union
Updating Evidence Laws for the Digital Space: Overseas Production Orders
By: Annabel Gillham
In a bid to keep English law up to date with technological advances, the Crime (Overseas Production Orders) Bill 2018 has passed the committee stage at the House of Lords. The proposed legislation is intended to allow enhanced judicial cooperation to tackle serious crime. However, it
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November 07, 2018 - European Union
New EU Regulation to Strengthen the Free Movement of Data
By: Kristina Ehle and Stephan Kreß
The European Union is close to finalizing a new regulation on the free flow of non-personal data within the EU. This is part of an EU goal to remove technical and legislative barriers to open data flows, including data location restrictions which force service
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October 31, 2018 - European Union
The UK’s Last Budget Before Brexit – Tech, Tax and Temerity
By: Trevor L James
UK Chancellor of the Exchequer, Philip Hammond, has presented the final UK Budget before Brexit. In this alert we outline the key tax proposals from the Budget applicable to companies and investors in the tech sector, including: a digital services tax for “tech giants”; additional
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October 23, 2018 - European Union, Telecommunications
Digital Single Market Update: Technology Standardization in the EU
By: Wolfgang Schönig and Alistair Maughan
ICT standardization is a key part of the European Union’s package of measures designed to improve Europe’s competitiveness and productivity. As part of the EU’s Digital Single Market initiative, the European Commission has been working on common ICT standards that would ensure the interoperability
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August 17, 2018 - Artificial Intelligence, European Union
Can the EU become a leader in AI Technology?
By: Alistair Maughan
The European Commission has stated that it wants to establish the EU as a leader in the AI industry in order to, among other things, discontinue non-EU companies’ dominance of the EU tech market. Nevertheless, the Commission’s goals for increasing the use of AI
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August 16, 2018 - European Union, Fintech, Telecommunications
UK PRA's 'Dear CEO' Letter on Exposure to Crypto-Assets
On 28 June 2018, the United Kingdom Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) published a letter to the CEOs of banks, insurance companies and designated investment firms to communicate the PRA’s expectations regarding firms’ exposure to crypto-assets. In particular, the letter flagged the risks associated with
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August 10, 2018 - European Union, Fintech, Telecommunications
Announcing the Global Financial Innovation Network
On 7 August, 2018, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced that it has, in collaboration with 11 other financial regulators and related organisations, including the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, created the Global Financial Innovation Network (GFIN) to
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