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Article 3

Designation of gatekeepers

1.   An undertaking shall be designated as a gatekeeper if:

(a)

it has a significant impact on the internal market;

(b)

it provides a core_platform_service which is an important gateway for business_users to reach end_users; and

(c)

it enjoys an entrenched and durable position, in its operations, or it is foreseeable that it will enjoy such a position in the near future.

2.   An undertaking shall be presumed to satisfy the respective requirements in paragraph 1:

(a)

as regards paragraph 1, point (a), where it achieves an annual Union turnover equal to or above EUR 7,5 billion in each of the last three financial years, or where its average market capitalisation or its equivalent fair market value amounted to at least EUR 75 billion in the last financial year, and it provides the same core_platform_service in at least three Member States;

(b)

as regards paragraph 1, point (b), where it provides a core_platform_service that in the last financial year has at least 45 million monthly active end_users established or located in the Union and at least 10 000 yearly active business_users established in the Union, identified and calculated in accordance with the methodology and indicators set out in the Annex;

(c)

as regards paragraph 1, point (c), where the thresholds in point (b) of this paragraph were met in each of the last three financial years.

3.   Where an undertaking providing core_platform_services meets all of the thresholds in paragraph 2, it shall notify the Commission thereof without delay and in any event within 2 months after those thresholds are met and provide it with the relevant information identified in paragraph 2. That notification shall include the relevant information identified in paragraph 2 for each of the core_platform_services of the undertaking that meets the thresholds in paragraph 2, point (b). Whenever a further core_platform_service provided by the undertaking that has previously been designated as a gatekeeper meets the thresholds in paragraph 2, points (b) and (c), such undertaking shall notify the Commission thereof within 2 months after those thresholds are satisfied.

Where the undertaking providing the core_platform_service fails to notify the Commission pursuant to the first subparagraph of this paragraph and fails to provide within the deadline set by the Commission in the request for information pursuant to Article 21 all the relevant information that is required for the Commission to designate the undertaking concerned as gatekeeper pursuant to paragraph 4 of this Article, the Commission shall still be entitled to designate that undertaking as a gatekeeper, based on information available to the Commission.

Where the undertaking providing core_platform_services complies with the request for information pursuant to the second subparagraph of this paragraph or where the information is provided after the expiration of the deadline referred to in that subparagraph, the Commission shall apply the procedure set out in paragraph 4.

4.   The Commission shall designate as a gatekeeper, without undue delay and at the latest within 45 working days after receiving the complete information referred to in paragraph 3, an undertaking providing core_platform_services that meets all the thresholds in paragraph 2.

5.   The undertaking providing core_platform_services may present, with its notification, sufficiently substantiated arguments to demonstrate that, exceptionally, although it meets all the thresholds in paragraph 2, due to the circumstances in which the relevant core_platform_service operates, it does not satisfy the requirements listed in paragraph 1.

Where the Commission considers that the arguments submitted pursuant to the first subparagraph by the undertaking providing core_platform_services are not sufficiently substantiated because they do not manifestly call into question the presumptions set out in paragraph 2 of this Article, it may reject those arguments within the time limit referred to in paragraph 4, without applying the procedure laid down in Article 17(3).

Where the undertaking providing core_platform_services does present such sufficiently substantiated arguments manifestly calling into question the presumptions in paragraph 2 of this Article, the Commission may, notwithstanding the first subparagraph of this paragraph, within the time limit referred to in paragraph 4 of this Article, open the procedure laid down in Article 17(3).

If the Commission concludes that the undertaking providing core_platform_services was not able to demonstrate that the relevant core_platform_services that it provides do not satisfy the requirements of paragraph 1 of this Article, it shall designate that undertaking as a gatekeeper in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17(3).

6.   The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 49 to supplement this Regulation by specifying the methodology for determining whether the quantitative thresholds laid down in paragraph 2 of this Article are met, and to regularly adjust that methodology to market and technological developments, where necessary.

7.   The Commission is empowered to adopt delegated acts in accordance with Article 49 to amend this Regulation by updating the methodology and the list of indicators set out in the Annex.

8.   The Commission shall designate as a gatekeeper, in accordance with the procedure laid down in Article 17, any undertaking providing core_platform_services that meets each of the requirements of paragraph 1 of this Article, but does not satisfy each of the thresholds in paragraph 2 of this Article.

For that purpose, the Commission shall take into account some or all of the following elements, insofar as they are relevant for the undertaking providing core_platform_services under consideration:

(a)

the size, including turnover and market capitalisation, operations and position of that undertaking;

(b)

the number of business_users using the core_platform_service to reach end_users and the number of end_users;

(c)

network effects and data driven advantages, in particular in relation to that undertaking’s access to, and collection of, personal data and non-personal data or analytics capabilities;

(d)

any scale and scope effects from which the undertaking benefits, including with regard to data, and, where relevant, to its activities outside the Union;

(e)

business_user or end_user lock-in, including switching costs and behavioural bias reducing the ability of business_users and end_users to switch or multi-home;

(f)

a conglomerate corporate structure or vertical integration of that undertaking, for instance enabling that undertaking to cross subsidise, to combine data from different sources or to leverage its position; or

(g)

other structural business or service characteristics.

In carrying out its assessment under this paragraph, the Commission shall take into account foreseeable developments in relation to the elements listed in the second subparagraph, including any planned concentrations involving another undertaking providing core_platform_services or providing any other services in the digital_sector or enabling the collection of data.

Where an undertaking providing a core_platform_service that does not satisfy the quantitative thresholds of paragraph 2 fails to comply with the investigative measures ordered by the Commission in a significant manner, and that failure persists after that undertaking has been invited to comply within a reasonable time limit and to submit observations, the Commission may designate that undertaking as a gatekeeper on the basis of the facts available to the Commission.

9.   For each undertaking designated as a gatekeeper pursuant to paragraph 4 or 8, the Commission shall list in the designation decision the relevant core_platform_services that are provided within that undertaking and which individually are an important gateway for business_users to reach end_users as referred to in paragraph 1, point (b).

10.   The gatekeeper shall comply with the obligations laid down in Articles 5, 6 and 7 within 6 months after a core_platform_service has been listed in the designation decision pursuant to paragraph 9 of this Article.

Article 4

Review of the status of gatekeeper

1.   The Commission may, upon request or on its own initiative, reconsider, amend or repeal at any moment a designation decision adopted pursuant to Article 3 for one of the following reasons:

(a)

there has been a substantial change in any of the facts on which the designation decision was based;

(b)

the designation decision was based on incomplete, incorrect or misleading information.

2.   The Commission shall regularly, and at least every 3 years, review whether the gatekeepers continue to satisfy the requirements laid down in Article 3(1). That review shall also examine whether the list of core_platform_services of the gatekeeper which are individually an important gateway for business_users to reach end_users, as referred to in Article 3(1), point (b), needs to be amended. Those reviews shall have no suspending effect on the gatekeeper’s obligations.

The Commission shall also examine at least every year whether new undertakings providing core_platform_services satisfy those requirements.

Where the Commission, on the basis of the reviews pursuant to the first subparagraph, finds that the facts on which the designation of the undertakings providing core_platform_services as gatekeepers was based, have changed, it shall adopt a decision confirming, amending or repealing the designation decision.

3.   The Commission shall publish and update a list of gatekeepers and the list of the core_platform_services for which they need to comply with the obligations laid down in Chapter III on an on-going basis.

CHAPTER III

PRACTICES OF GATEKEEPERS THAT LIMIT CONTESTABILITY OR ARE UNFAIR

Article 5

Obligations for gatekeepers

1.   The gatekeeper shall comply with all obligations set out in this Article with respect to each of its core_platform_services listed in the designation decision pursuant to Article 3(9).

2.   The gatekeeper shall not do any of the following:

(a)

process, for the purpose of providing online advertising services, personal data of end_users using services of third parties that make use of core_platform_services of the gatekeeper;

(b)

combine personal data from the relevant core_platform_service with personal data from any further core_platform_services or from any other services provided by the gatekeeper or with personal data from third-party services;

(c)

cross-use personal data from the relevant core_platform_service in other services provided separately by the gatekeeper, including other core_platform_services, and vice versa; and

(d)

sign in end_users to other services of the gatekeeper in order to combine personal data,

unless the end_user has been presented with the specific choice and has given consent within the meaning of Article 4, point (11), and Article 7 of Regulation (EU) 2016/679.

Where the consent given for the purposes of the first subparagraph has been refused or withdrawn by the end_user, the gatekeeper shall not repeat its request for consent for the same purpose more than once within a period of one year.

This paragraph is without prejudice to the possibility for the gatekeeper to rely on Article 6(1), points (c), (d) and (e) of Regulation (EU) 2016/679, where applicable.

3.   The gatekeeper shall not prevent business_users from offering the same products or services to end_users through third-party online_intermediation_services or through their own direct online sales channel at prices or conditions that are different from those offered through the online_intermediation_services of the gatekeeper.

4.   The gatekeeper shall allow business_users, free of charge, to communicate and promote offers, including under different conditions, to end_users acquired via its core_platform_service or through other channels, and to conclude contracts with those end_users, regardless of whether, for that purpose, they use the core_platform_services of the gatekeeper.

5.   The gatekeeper shall allow end_users to access and use, through its core_platform_services, content, subscriptions, features or other items, by using the software_application of a business_user, including where those end_users acquired such items from the relevant business_user without using the core_platform_services of the gatekeeper.

6.   The gatekeeper shall not directly or indirectly prevent or restrict business_users or end_users from raising any issue of non-compliance with the relevant Union or national law by the gatekeeper with any relevant public authority, including national_courts, related to any practice of the gatekeeper. This is without prejudice to the right of business_users and gatekeepers to lay down in their agreements the terms of use of lawful complaints-handling mechanisms.

7.   The gatekeeper shall not require end_users to use, or business_users to use, to offer, or to interoperate with, an identification_service, a web_browser engine or a payment_service, or technical services that support the provision of payment_services, such as payment systems for in-app purchases, of that gatekeeper in the context of services provided by the business_users using that gatekeeper’s core_platform_services.

8.   The gatekeeper shall not require business_users or end_users to subscribe to, or register with, any further core_platform_services listed in the designation decision pursuant to Article 3(9) or which meet the thresholds in Article 3(2), point (b), as a condition for being able to use, access, sign up for or registering with any of that gatekeeper’s core_platform_services listed pursuant to that Article.

9.   The gatekeeper shall provide each advertiser to which it supplies online advertising services, or third parties authorised by advertisers, upon the advertiser’s request, with information on a daily basis free of charge, concerning each advertisement placed by the advertiser, regarding:

(a)

the price and fees paid by that advertiser, including any deductions and surcharges, for each of the relevant online advertising services provided by the gatekeeper,

(b)

the remuneration received by the publisher, including any deductions and surcharges, subject to the publisher’s consent; and

(c)

the metrics on which each of the prices, fees and remunerations are calculated.

In the event that a publisher does not consent to the sharing of information regarding the remuneration received, as referred to in point (b) of the first subparagraph, the gatekeeper shall provide each advertiser free of charge with information concerning the daily average remuneration received by that publisher, including any deductions and surcharges, for the relevant advertisements.

10.   The gatekeeper shall provide each publisher to which it supplies online advertising services, or third parties authorised by publishers, upon the publisher’s request, with free of charge information on a daily basis, concerning each advertisement displayed on the publisher’s inventory, regarding:

(a)

the remuneration received and the fees paid by that publisher, including any deductions and surcharges, for each of the relevant online advertising services provided by the gatekeeper;

(b)

the price paid by the advertiser, including any deductions and surcharges, subject to the advertiser’s consent; and

(c)

the metrics on which each of the prices and remunerations are calculated.

In the event an advertiser does not consent to the sharing of information, the gatekeeper shall provide each publisher free of charge with information concerning the daily average price paid by that advertiser, including any deductions and surcharges, for the relevant advertisements.

Article 6

Obligations for gatekeepers susceptible of being further specified under Article 8

1.   The Gatekeeper shall comply with all obligations set out in this Article with respect to each of its core_platform_services listed in the designation decision pursuant to Article 3(9).

2.   The gatekeeper shall not use, in competition with business_users, any data that is not publicly available that is generated or provided by those business_users in the context of their use of the relevant core_platform_services or of the services provided together with, or in support of, the relevant core_platform_services, including data generated or provided by the customers of those business_users.

For the purposes of the first subparagraph, the data that is not publicly available shall include any aggregated and non-aggregated data generated by business_users that can be inferred from, or collected through, the commercial activities of business_users or their customers, including click, search, view and voice data, on the relevant core_platform_services or on services provided together with, or in support of, the relevant core_platform_services of the gatekeeper.

3.   The gatekeeper shall allow and technically enable end_users to easily un-install any software_applications on the operating_system of the gatekeeper, without prejudice to the possibility for that gatekeeper to restrict such un-installation in relation to software_applications that are essential for the functioning of the operating_system or of the device and which cannot technically be offered on a standalone basis by third parties.

The gatekeeper shall allow and technically enable end_users to easily change default settings on the operating_system, virtual_assistant and web_browser of the gatekeeper that direct or steer end_users to products or services provided by the gatekeeper. That includes prompting end_users, at the moment of the end_users’ first use of an online_search_engine, virtual_assistant or web_browser of the gatekeeper listed in the designation decision pursuant to Article 3(9), to choose, from a list of the main available service providers, the online_search_engine, virtual_assistant or web_browser to which the operating_system of the gatekeeper directs or steers users by default, and the online_search_engine to which the virtual_assistant and the web_browser of the gatekeeper directs or steers users by default.

4.   The gatekeeper shall allow and technically enable the installation and effective use of third-party software_applications or software_application_stores using, or interoperating with, its operating_system and allow those software_applications or software_application_stores to be accessed by means other than the relevant core_platform_services of that gatekeeper. The gatekeeper shall, where applicable, not prevent the downloaded third-party software_applications or software_application_stores from prompting end_users to decide whether they want to set that downloaded software_application or software_application store as their default. The gatekeeper shall technically enable end_users who decide to set that downloaded software_application or software_application store as their default to carry out that change easily.

The gatekeeper shall not be prevented from taking, to the extent that they are strictly necessary and proportionate, measures to ensure that third-party software_applications or software_application_stores do not endanger the integrity of the hardware or operating_system provided by the gatekeeper, provided that such measures are duly justified by the gatekeeper.

Furthermore, the gatekeeper shall not be prevented from applying, to the extent that they are strictly necessary and proportionate, measures and settings other than default settings, enabling end_users to effectively protect security in relation to third-party software_applications or software_application_stores, provided that such measures and settings other than default settings are duly justified by the gatekeeper.

5.   The gatekeeper shall not treat more favourably, in ranking and related indexing and crawling, services and products offered by the gatekeeper itself than similar services or products of a third party. The gatekeeper shall apply transparent, fair and non-discriminatory conditions to such ranking.

6.   The gatekeeper shall not restrict technically or otherwise the ability of end_users to switch between, and subscribe to, different software_applications and services that are accessed using the core_platform_services of the gatekeeper, including as regards the choice of Internet access services for end_users.

7.   The gatekeeper shall allow providers of services and providers of hardware, free of charge, effective interoperability with, and access for the purposes of interoperability to, the same hardware and software features accessed or controlled via the operating_system or virtual_assistant listed in the designation decision pursuant to Article 3(9) as are available to services or hardware provided by the gatekeeper. Furthermore, the gatekeeper shall allow business_users and alternative providers of services provided together with, or in support of, core_platform_services, free of charge, effective interoperability with, and access for the purposes of interoperability to, the same operating_system, hardware or software features, regardless of whether those features are part of the operating_system, as are available to, or used by, that gatekeeper when providing such services.

The gatekeeper shall not be prevented from taking strictly necessary and proportionate measures to ensure that interoperability does not compromise the integrity of the operating_system, virtual_assistant, hardware or software features provided by the gatekeeper, provided that such measures are duly justified by the gatekeeper.

8.   The gatekeeper shall provide advertisers and publishers, as well as third parties authorised by advertisers and publishers, upon their request and free of charge, with access to the performance measuring tools of the gatekeeper and the data necessary for advertisers and publishers to carry out their own independent verification of the advertisements inventory, including aggregated and non-aggregated data. Such data shall be provided in a manner that enables advertisers and publishers to run their own verification and measurement tools to assess the performance of the core_platform_services provided for by the gatekeepers.

9.   The gatekeeper shall provide end_users and third parties authorised by an end_user, at their request and free of charge, with effective portability of data provided by the end_user or generated through the activity of the end_user in the context of the use of the relevant core_platform_service, including by providing, free of charge, tools to facilitate the effective exercise of such data portability, and including by the provision of continuous and real-time access to such data.

10.   The gatekeeper shall provide business_users and third parties authorised by a business_user, at their request, free of charge, with effective, high-quality, continuous and real-time access to, and use of, aggregated and non-aggregated data, including personal data, that is provided for or generated in the context of the use of the relevant core_platform_services or services provided together with, or in support of, the relevant core_platform_services by those business_users and the end_users engaging with the products or services provided by those business_users. With regard to personal data, the gatekeeper shall provide for such access to, and use of, personal data only where the data are directly connected with the use effectuated by the end_users in respect of the products or services offered by the relevant business_user through the relevant core_platform_service, and when the end_users opt in to such sharing by giving their consent.

11.   The gatekeeper shall provide to any third-party undertaking providing online_search_engines, at its request, with access on fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms to ranking, query, click and view data in relation to free and paid search generated by end_users on its online_search_engines. Any such query, click and view data that constitutes personal data shall be anonymised.

12.   The gatekeeper shall apply fair, reasonable, and non-discriminatory general conditions of access for business_users to its software_application_stores, online_search_engines and online_social_networking_services listed in the designation decision pursuant to Article 3(9).

For that purpose, the gatekeeper shall publish general conditions of access, including an alternative dispute settlement mechanism.

The Commission shall assess whether the published general conditions of access comply with this paragraph.

13.   The gatekeeper shall not have general conditions for terminating the provision of a core_platform_service that are disproportionate. The gatekeeper shall ensure that the conditions of termination can be exercised without undue difficulty.

Article 38

Cooperation and coordination with national competent authorities enforcing competition rules

1.   The Commission and the national competent authorities of the Member States enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) shall cooperate with each other and inform each other about their respective enforcement actions through the European Competition Network (ECN). They shall have the power to provide one another with any information regarding a matter of fact or of law, including confidential information. Where the competent authority is not a member of the ECN, the Commission shall make the necessary arrangements for cooperation and exchange of information on cases concerning the enforcement of this Regulation and the enforcement of cases referred to in Article 1(6) of such authorities. The Commission may lay down such arrangements in an implementing act as referred to in Article 46(1), point (l).

2.   Where a national competent authority of the Member States enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) intends to launch an investigation on gatekeepers based on national laws referred to in Article 1(6), it shall inform the Commission in writing of the first formal investigative measure, before or immediately after the start of such measure. This information may also be made available to the national competent authorities enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) of the other Member States.

3.   Where a national competent authority of the Member States enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) intends to impose obligations on gatekeepers based on national laws referred to in Article 1(6), it shall, no later than 30 days before its adoption, communicate the draft measure to the Commission stating the reasons for the measure. In the case of interim measures, the national competent authority of the Member States enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) shall communicate to the Commission the draft measures envisaged as soon as possible, and at the latest immediately after the adoption of such measures. This information may also be made available to the national competent authorities enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) of the other Member States.

4.   The information mechanisms provided for in paragraphs 2 and 3 shall not apply to decisions envisaged pursuant to national merger rules.

5.   Information exchanged pursuant to paragraphs 1 to 3 of this Article shall only be exchanged and used for the purpose of coordination of the enforcement of this Regulation and the rules referred to in Article 1(6).

6.   The Commission may ask national competent authorities of the Member States enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) to support any of its market investigations pursuant to this Regulation.

7.   Where it has the competence and investigative powers to do so under national law, a national competent authority of the Member States enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) may, on its own initiative, conduct an investigation into a case of possible non-compliance with Articles 5, 6 and 7 of this Regulation on its territory. Before taking a first formal investigative measure, that authority shall inform the Commission in writing.

The opening of proceedings by the Commission pursuant to Article 20 shall relieve the national competent authorities of the Member States enforcing the rules referred to in Article 1(6) of the possibility to conduct such an investigation or end it where it is already ongoing. Those authorities shall report to the Commission on the findings of such investigation in order to support the Commission in its role as sole enforcer of this Regulation.


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