Today, the European Commission proposed the Digital Fairness Act (DFA). The European Tech Alliance (EUTA) supports strong and consistently enforced consumer protection that enables informed choice, fairer online markets and a level playing field that allows companies to compete, grow and innovate with confidence. The DFA will further complicate a fragmented rulebook, instead of making the existing pieces fit together and ensuring they are enforced the same way across the Single Market.
Europe does not lack consumer rules: at least 13 EU legislations already address dark patterns alone. Consumer protection is one of the areas of EU law most affected by gold-plating, with Member States adding national requirements on top of EU rules. As a result, a consumer in Lisbon and a consumer in Tallinn do not enjoy the same protection, consumers struggle to know their rights, and companies struggle to scale across Europe.
Rules are only as good as their enforcement. Today, 27 national authorities can read the same rules in 27 different ways, so the same practice can lead to different verdicts. An ambitious revision of the Consumer Protection Cooperation (CPC) Regulation, with one common reading of EU consumer law, would do more for consumers than any new layer of rules.
The following can be attributed to EUTA’s Secretary General, Victoria de Posson:
“Europe already has the pieces of the consumer protection puzzle: the problem is that they don’t fit. The Digital Fairness Act adds another piece instead of making them click. Every European deserves strong protection, and the same protection wherever they live in Europe.”
The following can be attributed to EUTA’s Policy Officer, Guénolé Carré:
“The Digital Fairness Act should empower consumers to better know and use their existing rights, not create blanket bans. A lower price for surplus food at the end of the day, or an honest ‘only one left’ message, helps consumers and cuts waste. Target the abuse, not the feature, otherwise consumers lose benefits they value.”
EUTA will analyse the proposal in detail with its members and share its recommendations within the coming weeks.
About the European Tech Alliance
EUTA represents leading European tech companies that provide innovative products and services to more than one billion users. Our 41 EUTA member companies from 16 European countries are popular and have earned the trust of consumers. As companies born and bred in Europe, for whom the EU is a crucial market, we have a deep commitment to European citizens and values.
With the right conditions, our companies can strengthen Europe’s resilience and technological autonomy, protect and empower users online, and promote Europe’s values of transparency, rule of law and innovation to the rest of the world.
The EUTA calls for boosting Europe’s tech competitiveness by having an ambitious EU tech strategy to overcome growth obstacles, making a political commitment to clear, targeted and risk-based rules, and enforcing rules consistently to match the globalised market we are in.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Victoria de Posson, EUTA Secretary General
E-mail: victoria@eutechalliance.eu
E-mail: info@eutechalliance.eu
Phone: +32 476 25 08 16
www.eutechalliance.eu
Image credits: © European Union, 2026, licensed under CC BY 4.0
