Virtual worlds – opportunities, risks and policy implications for the single market
IMCO-PR-751902
Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection · Rapporteur: Pablo Arias Echeverría
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A draft report by Parliament's Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee on virtual worlds and the single market. It welcomes the Commission's Web 4.0 initiative, calls for a clear regulatory framework, interoperability and open standards, and asks the Commission to report every two years.¶¶¶ It flags risks to consumers, privacy, cybersecurity and competition, and warns about health problems and the need to protect minors. It also covers accessibility for people with disabilities, infrastructure needs, and the sustainability of devices and energy use.¶¶¶
Committee position. The rapporteur welcomes the Commission's Web 4.0 initiative and sees no need for new regulation of virtual worlds for now. He calls on the Commission to monitor developments and conduct regular regulatory fitness checks of the digital single market, proposing legislation where necessary.¶¶¶
Key points
- Welcomes the Commission communication of 11 July 2023 on Web 4.0 and virtual worlds, and says there is no universally agreed definition of virtual worlds.¶¶
- Says a true digital single market and a clear, comprehensive regulatory framework are vital, and fragmentation within it must be monitored.¶
- Welcomes the Digital Services Act and Digital Markets Act, notes the artificial intelligence act proposal, and wants regular public regulatory fitness checks of the digital single market.¶
- Invites the Commission to report every two years to Parliament and the Council, and to watch for fake news, intellectual property infringement, cyberterrorism, sexual abuse of minors and cyberbullying.¶
- Highlights the economic growth potential of virtual worlds and the role of virtual reality, augmented reality and mixed reality, and the new jobs and skills needed.¶¶
- Notes most leading companies are outside the EU, and wants the EU to shape virtual worlds around European values and a level playing field for small and medium-sized enterprises.¶
- Supports interoperability and open standards to prevent quasi-monopolies, and backs a technical multi-stakeholder forum for technical standards.¶
- Stresses that virtual worlds must be open and accessible, especially for people with disabilities, and warns of accessibility barriers.¶
- Says user identification should be a priority, with anonymity possible under a username behind which an individual is identifiable by competent authorities when needed.¶
- Reiterates the importance of protecting personal data and privacy, says the General Data Protection Regulation might not be enough, and calls for attention to user-generated content.¶
- Warns of health problems such as addiction, cybersickness and sleep disturbances, especially among minors, while noting virtual worlds' learning potential and the need to protect minors from abuse, harassment and bullying.¶¶
- Notes high infrastructure needs including 5G, 6G and edge computing, calls for an assessment of infrastructure delivery to consumers, and points to rare earths, critical raw materials, climate benefits and reduced energy use.¶¶¶
Who is affected
- Consumers, whose protection, privacy and data in virtual worlds the report addresses.¶¶
- Minors and young people, who face health risks and need protection from abuse and bullying.¶¶
- People with disabilities, who may face accessibility barriers in virtual worlds.¶
- European small and medium-sized enterprises, for which the report seeks a level playing field.¶
- The Commission, which is asked to report every two years and conduct regulatory fitness checks.¶¶