The document provides a summary of policy developments across various sectors in the European Union during February 2014. Key points include: - The EU agreed on the budget for the 2014-2020 Fisheries Fund and new climate and energy targets were unveiled for 2030, including reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40% and increasing renewable energy to 27% of the energy mix. - Reforms were reached on financial services and the Emissions Trading System, while principles for shale gas extraction and stronger food fraud penalties were recommended. - Investigations were started in the media sector and policies reviewed for transport liberalization and inland waterways. - Agreements and initiatives touched on competition, consumers, intellectual property, trade, research,

1. .INSIGHTS BRUSSELS.
.February 2014.
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014

2. 2014: Reshuffling Europe’s Policy Priorities and Leadership ........................................................................................ 4
SECTORAL POLICIES................................................................................................. 5
Agriculture And Fisheries ................................................................................................................. 5
EU agrees financial allocation for 2014-2020 Fisheries Fund ....................................................................................... 5
Energy and Environment ................................................................................................................... 5
European Commission unveils new climate and energy targets for 2030 ..................................................................... 5
ETS: Commission proposes a permanent market stability reserve from 2021 .............................................................. 6
EC recommends minimum principles for shale gas extraction ...................................................................................... 7
Financial Services .............................................................................................................................. 7
EU institutions reach agreement on financial services reform ....................................................................................... 7
Food and Beverage ............................................................................................................................. 8
Parliament calls for stronger sanctions against food fraudsters .................................................................................... 8
Healthcare and Pharmaceuticals ...................................................................................................... 9
EFSA concludes that Bisphenol A is dangerous for human health................................................................................ 9
Information and Communication Technology .................................................................................. 9
European Parliament’s Committee dismantles Telecom Package ................................................................................ 9
Cyber security: no obligation for Internet giants to reveal cyber-attacks ..................................................................... 10
Media and Audiovisual works .......................................................................................................... 11
European Commission starts investigations over pay TV providers ............................................................................ 11
Transport ........................................................................................................................................... 11
MEPs review liberalization of ground-handling services at EU airports ....................................................................... 11
European Parliament supports EU inland waterway programme ................................................................................ 12
Public consultation on real-time traffic information services ........................................................................................ 12
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014

3. CROSS-SECTORAL POLICIES .................................................................................. 13
Competition ...................................................................................................................................... 13
Google’s proposal on search services deemed acceptable by the Commission ......................................................... 13
Consumers ........................................................................................................................................ 13
EC launches consultation on fragrance allergens ....................................................................................................... 13
European Parliament approves 2014-2020 consumers programme ........................................................................... 14
Intellectual Property Rights ............................................................................................................ 15
EU Parliament adopts Directive on collective management of copyright ..................................................................... 15
International Trade.......................................................................................................................... 16
EC wants to include financial services in EU/US free trade agreement ...................................................................... 16
Research and Development .............................................................................................................. 17
EU funds 67 projects bringing research closer to market ............................................................................................ 17
Taxation ........................................................................................................................................... 17
EC denonces lack of ambitions on Financial Transaction Tax .................................................................................... 17
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014

4. 2014: Reshuffling Europe’s Policy Priorities and Leadership
The next eleven months will represent the most crucial testbed for Europe’s future ambition, direction and leadership.
Among the key milestones captured in the calendar-chart
below, two events should mark a new decisive start for
Europe. They will determine Europe’s capacity to respond to
people’s needs and to tackle new global policy challenges.
The first event is set for next May, when 300 million citizens
from across the 28 European Union Member States will be
called to elect their representatives to the European
Parliament for a five years mandate.
The second event is in November, when a new European
Commission, the executive body of the European Union, will
take office for a five years term.
In both cases, and during the entire legislature, the most
compelling challenge to be faced by policy makers is to gain
the interest and engagement of the Europeans on a shared
vision about the European Union project.
The role and responsibility of “Brussels”, of its institutional
representatives and multiple centres of interest and
influence, to help overcome such challenge by responding to
‘real’ people’s needs is indisputable. Meanwhile, the way
citizens’ views, perspectives and needs will be represented
on the pan-European policy agenda is a consequence of
both individual and collective choices. In the always-on and
inter-connected communication age, every individual and
organisation can more easily contribute to articulate a new
narrative for Europe and compel the candidates for the
forthcoming institutions to bring the latter closer and more
relevant to all of us.
There is still an empty space, a compelling story to be told,
in between the opposite paths of “silence” and “noise”
characterising the on-going policy debate on the Europe we
want. Let’s not miss the opportunity to contribute to writing
this story, beyond the noisy frenzy of extremisms and the
silent lethargy or snobbism of agnostics.
Leonardo Sforza
Managing Director MSLGROUP Brussels
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014

5. SECTORAL POLICIES
Agriculture
And Fisheries
EU agrees financial allocation for 2014-2020 Fisheries Fund
On 28 January, the European Commission,
Parliament and Council reached an agreement on
the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
(EMFF) due to finance the European Union’s
Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) previously
adopted in 2013. The debate crashed last
December following a dispute between Members
of the European Parliament and the Council of
Ministers on the funding pot. According to the new
agreement, the EMFF will be funded with 6.5
billion euros until 2020. Even if funds available for
data gathering, campaigners for sustainable
fishing criticised some parts of the agreement,
such as the agreed-upon subsidies for the
replacement of engines in fishing vessel as these
may increase in the long-term the capacity of
vessels. Subsidies for the temporary cessation of
fishing have also been criticized on the ground
that this would only postpone overfishing without
ending the problem.
The agreement will be formally approved in April
by the European Parliament.

Mid February: Approval by Council of Ministers
March: Approval by PECH Committee
April: Vote in the Parliament during plenary session
Energy and
Environment
European Commission unveils new climate and energy targets for 2030
On 22 January, the European Commission
presented its long-awaited 2030 climate and
energy package setting new goals for the energy
policy beyond the current 2020 target. The
proposal sets binding targets for the reduction in
greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 40% below
the 1990 level, and binding targets for renewable
energies aimed at reaching at least 27% of EU
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
energy mix by 2030. The new framework,
however, does not include new targets for energy
efficiency. A new governance framework based
on national plans for competitive, secure and
sustainable energy is also included in the
framework. Based on upcoming guidelines
prepared by the Commission, these plans will be
prepared by the Member States under a common

6. approach, which are expected to enhance
coherence, coordination and surveillance
throughout Europe.
Within the Council of the European Union, the
Commission’s proposal aroused mixed reactions.
While the new framework seems to have support
from all the EU's Western capitals, including
Berlin, Paris, Rome and London, it sparked
however rather negative reactions among the
Central and Eastern European countries.
However, the European Parliament adopted with
large majority a tougher resolution that supports
three binding energy and climate targets for 2030,
including 40% for GHG reductions, 30% for
renewables and a 40% increase in energy
efficiency. The Parliament’s vote is not binding,
but will frame the debate in the negotiations over
the Commission’s proposal.
The European Council is set to discuss the 2030
energy and climate package during a EU summit
in March. The Commission invited the Council
and the European Parliament to agree by the end
of 2014 on the 40% GHG reduction to gain
momentum in advance of the upcoming
international conference on a new global climate
agreement due to be concluded in Paris at the
end of 2015.

20-21 March: European Council examines the package
End 2014: possible adoption of 40% reduction target
December 2015: Climate change conference in Paris
ETS: Commission proposes a permanent market stability reserve from 2021
Along with the proposal for a 2030 climate and
energy framework, the Commission has
proposed a long-term reform of the EU emissions
trading system (EU ETS) and wishes to establish
a market stability reserve at the beginning of the
next ETS trading period in 2021. The reserve
would both address the surplus of emission
allowances that has been built up in recent years
and improve the system's resilience to major
shocks by automatically adjusting the supply of
allowances to be auctioned. This would imply the
withdrawal of allowances if a surplus builds up
(more than 833 million allowances) and their
release on the market when there is a deficit
(fewer than 400 million allowances).
pre-defined rules which would leave no discretion
to the Commission or Member States in its
implementation. Some fear that this reserve
would represent a market intervention from the
Commission and called instead to set up a carbon
‘central bank' which would have an independent
regulatory board taking decisions. But this system
was deemed to be too complex.
The creation of such a reserve – which comes
after the recently agreed delay in the auctioning
of 900 million allowances until 2019-2020 ('backloading') - would operate entirely according to

INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
EU Heads of State and Government will also
discuss this ETS reform during the March EU
summit. In any case, the legislation, an
amendment to the existing ETS regulation, will
need to be approved by the European Parliament
and the Council of Ministers.
20-21 March: European Council examines the package
2021: possible new market stability reserve

7. EC recommends minimum principles for shale gas extraction
On 22 January, the European Commission
adopted a Recommendation aimed at ensuring
that Member States which choose to extract shale
gas on their territory should apply commonly
defined principles and carry out environmental
impact
assessments.
The
Commission
recommends that EU Member States, before
granting operating license, set up monitoring
systems to detect possible water contaminations,
and control emissions, including those of
greenhouse
gases,
through
capturing
mechanisms. The Commission also calls on
national authorities to ensure that drilling wells
are up to best standards and to inform the public
about the chemicals used in the process.
Member States and industry representatives
welcomed the non-binding status of the measure,
while NGOs denounced the recommendation for
being weak and unable to protect citizens against
the risks of fracking.
The implementation of these common principles
shall be made within the next six months. The
Commission will monitor the application of these
measures through a publicly accessible
scoreboard and will review in 18 months’ time the
level of adherence of member states to the
recommendation.

Mid 2014: full implementation
From December 2014: national yearly reports
Mid 2015: Commission’s report
Financial
Services
EU institutions reach agreement on financial services reform
On 16 January the delegates from the Council,
the Commission and the Parliament reached an
agreement on the MiFID II – MiFIR package,
composed of a set of updated rules for financial
markets instruments. The negotiations have been
particularly intricate, opposing the European
Parliament and the European Commission to
some Member States (particularly the UK). The
principal element of the compromise has been to
limit speculation on commodity derivatives. This
kind of speculation is said to have negative
impacts on the price of basic products causing
devastating consequences on developing
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
January 2014
economies. The European Security and Market
Authority (ESMA) will be in charge of calculating
these limits while the application of the rules will
be undertaken by national authorities.
Certain derivatives related to gas and electricity
have been exempted, as it was asked by the
British delegation.
High frequency transactions will also be restricted
on the grounds that they can destabilize financial
markets.

8. The reform also establishes a new trading
platform called Organised Trading Facility (OTS)
that will process deals in financial products other
than shares.
Transparency will also be increased through the
publication of information during trading.
Last, the package includes measures to boost
competition of services for settlement of financial
contracts once they are negotiated.
Even though Members of the European
Parliament and Internal Market Commissioner
Michel Barnier showed high satisfaction, some
NGOs fighting poverty criticized the compromise,
stating that some powerful sectors such as gas
and electricity were exempted in the regulation.
The new rules will be gradually implemented
through a 30 months transition period which can
be renewed for an additional 30 months period.
The new regulation is expected to effectively
enter into force around mid-2016.

March 2014: Adoption by the EP in plenary session
Mid-2016: Entry into force of the regulation
Food and
Beverage
Parliament calls for stronger sanctions against food fraudsters
On 6 February, Members of the European
Parliament adopted an own initiative report calling
for more severe penalties for companies that
commit food fraud. This report has been drafted
by
Esther
De
Lange
(Conservatives,
Netherlands) in the wake of the horsemeat
scandal which exploded last year. The report
mainly calls for the Commission to increase
penalties for companies who commit food fraud.
The Parliament resolution will lead to penalties “at
least doubling the estimated amount of the
economic advance sought trough the fraudulent
activity”. Higher penalties would apply if there is a
danger for public health.
The report also calls for a more comprehensive
system of labelling. Until last year only fresh beef
was labelled. Then the rule has been extended to
fresh pork, sheep, goat and poultry. The current
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
labelling system makes it compulsory to indicate
where the animal was reared and slaughtered but
not where it was born. Furthermore, the meat
contained in processed food is not labelled. The
Parliament resolution is to introduce a label for all
meat products, especially frozen ones. The aim of
the resolution is to allow consumers to be
informed about the animal’s place of birth, rearing
and slaughtering, but to provide also additional
information such as how many times the food has
been frozen and where. The report eventually
expressed some concerns about the current trade
negotiations with the United-States which could
introduce changes in the European food safety
and food security legislation.
The vote on the report has been welcomed by
consumers associations while the Commissioner
for health, Tonio Borg underlined that the

9. proposed labelling system would not have
prevented the horse meat scandal because it was
a case of fraud. Following this report, the
Parliament rejected the adoption of the measures
proposed by the Commission. The Commission
will now formulate an amended
integrating the Parliament’s requests.
proposal

Mid 2014: expected new Proposal from Commission
Healthcare and
Pharmaceuticals
EFSA concludes that Bisphenol A is dangerous for human health
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)
published a draft risk assessment concluding that
the exposure to Bisphenol A (BPA) can affect
human health. BPA is a chemical compound used
amongst others in food packages. According to
EFSA, the Tolerable Daily Intake (TDI) should be
divided by ten times (from 50µg/kg body weight
per day to5µg/kg body weight per day). The TDI
measures the quantity that can be daily
consumed during a lifetime without affecting
health. EFSA stated that excessive exposure to
BPA can have undesirable effects on the liver and
kidney but as well on the mammary gland.
Despite this fact EFSA concluded that there are
no immediate health risks because the current
levels of exposure to this chemical component
are too low.
A public online consultation will run until 13 March
in order to collect stakeholders’ comments on
BPA. Only then will EFSA give its final
conclusions about the toxicity and the possible
human health risks of BPA.

13 March: Deadline for the public consultation
Mid 2014: EFSA Final conclusions
Information and
Communication Technology
European Parliament’s Committee dismantles Telecom Package
On 22 January the Parliament’s Industry Trade
and Research Committee (ITRE) examined the
compromise amendments on the telecom
package. The package had been presented in
September 2013 by the European Commission,
and has since then faced severe criticism from
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
Member States and, more recently, in the
Parliament. Rapporteurs of both the ITRE
Committee, Pilar del Castillo (Conservatives,
Spain), and the Committee for Internal Market
and Consumer Protection (IMCO), Malcom
Harbour
(Conservatives,
United-Kingdom),

10. dismantled the original text that had always been
considered rushed and inaccurate.
Within the IMCO Committee, Parliamentarians
removed all articles related to contracts
(transparency, duration, cost of receiving
abroad). Those articles have been converted
in amendments to the current Directive
2009/136/EC on universal user´s right.
Members of the IMCO Committee also insisted
on not removing power from national telecoms
regulators. According to them, communication
markets are fast-moving and regulators need
flexibility and localism.
Within the ITRE Committee, Members
discussed the issue of roaming. They found
the Commission’s Proposal too complicated,
while incumbent operators fear to lose a
source of revenue which they claim is
reinvested in the network. Furthermore
operators cannot propose trans-European
roaming contracts because international
agreements are not allowed. As regards
European License, Parliamentarians replace
the Commission proposal to grant accessibility
to operators on the whole European Market
with a trans-European license.
BEUC (the European Consumers’ Organization)
welcomed the committees’ positions. The final
text that will be voted during the April plenary
session will differ a lot from the initial Commission
proposal.

April: Parliament’s plenary vote on Telecom package
April: Expected Council vote on Telecom package
Fall 2014: Expected adoption of the Telecom package
Cyber security: no obligation for Internet giants to reveal cyber-attacks
On 23 January the Committee for Internal Market
and Consumer Protection (IMCO) adopted a
report
presented
by
Andreas
Schwab
(Conservatives, Germany) on cyber security in
Europe. The Commission introduced one year
ago a strategy to tackle the issue of cyber security
in Europe. One of the Commission’s propositions
was to oblige Internet service providers to inform
users if an attack occurred. This rule already
exists for telecom operators. Nevertheless the
text approved by the IMCO Committee confirms
the obligation only for providers of infrastructure
that is vital for the economy or the general
security. This means that online trading platforms,
Internet payment gateways, social networks or
search engines would be asked to inform the
competent authorities only “on a voluntary basis”.
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
Regarding the second proposition of the
European Commission related to coordination
between Member States, the IMCO Committee
shares the same views as the Council: some of
the Commission’s proposed measures to
establish a network of national single points of
contact in case of cyber-attacks are redundant.
The rapporteur has now a mandate to close a
deal with the Parliament and the Commission by
May.

10 March: Parliament’s plenary vote on Cyber security Directive
May: expected adoption of the Directive

11. Media and
Audiovisual works
European Commission starts investigations over pay TV providers
On 13 January the European Commission
opened a formal anti-trust proceeding to examine
certain provisions in licensing agreements
between five American film studios (Twentieth
Century Fox, Warner Bros, Sony Pictures, NBC
Universal and Paramount Picture) and five
European TV broadcasters (BSkyB, Canal+, Sky
Italia, Sky Deutschland and DTS) . The aim of the
investigation is to detect if these provisions
prevent broadcasters from providing their
services across boarders by satellite or Internet.
Generally in these agreements, licensed
audiovisual content is sold on exclusive and
territorial basis in each Member State. According
to the Commission, this element “may constitute
an infringement of EU anti-trust rules that prohibit
anti-competitive agreements”.
The Commissioner for Competition, Joaquin
Almunia stated that this initiative is not aimed at
obliging studios to sell rights on a European basis
but only to guarantee consumer rights. The
Commissioner wants to examine the limitation
that a subscriber may be confronted with when
staying temporarily in another country. According
to him, a German pay-TV subscriber should be
able to watch movies while spending holidays in
Italy and any restriction to this fact could
represent an infraction to EU competition rules.
The European Court of Justice already ruled on
this type of agreements in October 2011 in a case
opposing the English Premier League and British
pubs which used to broadcast matches using
Greek TV-decoders, underlining that “a system of
licenses for the broadcasting of football matches
which grants broadcasters territorial exclusivity
on a member state basis and which prohibits
television viewers from watching the broadcasts
with a decoder card in other member states is
contrary to EU law”.

End 2016: expected end of investigations
Transport
MEPs review liberalization of ground-handling services at EU airports
On 30 January, the European Parliament’s
Committee on Transport (TRAN) adopted its report
on the proposal to liberalize supply of groundhandling services at major EU airports. The
European Commission put forward in December
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
2011 this proposal with a view to further opening
up the ground-handling service market such as air
traffic controllers, weather information services at
EU airports with more than five million passengers
a year. It planned to impose a strict structural

12. separation between the various providers of air
navigation services in an attempt to boost the entry
of new service providers in the market.
Members of the TRAN committee rejected this
approach by small majority (22 votes against, 20 in
favour, two abstentions). Many members feared
that the proposal would lead to a deterioration of
working conditions and deplored the lack of
evidence that this proposed regulation would
increase the overall efficiency of ground-handling
operations. Members of the TRAN committee
agreed that navigation service providers shall be
obliged to compare offers made by several
enterprises for support services and choose the
most beneficial provider both "financially and
qualitatively". Members also set a review clause in
2016 for the Commission which will have to assess
the impact of opening up the services to competition
The TRAN committee forwarded the proposal to the
Parliament plenary with a recommendation to reject
it. The vote during the plenary session is scheduled
for March.

10-13 March: vote in plenary session
European Parliament supports EU inland waterway programme
On 6 February, Members of the European
Parliament adopted by a large majority in plenary
session (428 in favour, 46 against and 11
abstentions) a resolution welcoming the
Commission’s proposal to renew until 2020 the
NAIADES programme for waterway transport.
Parliamentarians however regretted the lack of
ambition in the financing of the programme and
the lack of concrete and innovative measures that
account for the fact that the sector is heavily
reliant on SMEs. They suggest that the
Connecting Europe Facility, the EU's new funding
mechanism for infrastructure projects, should
support the waterways projects. Therefore, MEPs
called on the Commission to draw up a more
precise road map and called on Member States
to work on national strategies to stimulate
waterway transport.

20 February: vote in plenary session
Public consultation on real-time traffic information services
The European Commission opened a public
consultation on 10 January to seek views from
stakeholders who have an interest in the issue of
provision and usage of real-time traffic
information services and other related issues
such as the collection, processing and exchange
of data required to provide EU-wide real-time
traffic information services. The Commission is
particularly asking stakeholders about problems
with existing systems, improvements that can be
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
made and the impact any new improvements
might have. The results of this consultation will
inspire the on-going cost-benefit analysis, and a
possible proposal of the Commission on a EUwide real-time traffic information services. The
consultation is open until 14 March.

14 March: end of public consultation

13. CROSS-SECTORAL POLICIES
Competition
Google’s proposal on search services deemed acceptable by the Commission
On 5 February, the Commissioner for
Competition Joaquin Almunia welcomed the third
proposal made by Google to its competitors on
fair results in the search services. The
Commissioner is now going to forward the
proposal to the 18 plaintiffs (including Microsoft
and Expedia) explaining its position. Google has
been under investigation since November 2010.
The Commission claimed that the internet giant
was giving an unfair advantage to its own
specialised services by giving them prominent
space on its general search results page.
The Commission also sued Google for copying
competitors’ content without their consent, for
concluding exclusive advertising agreements and
by
threatening
advertisers
from
using
competitors’ platforms. In the latest arrangement
Google proposes now to pay a 3.7 billion Euro
fine and reserve space on its general results page
for competitors to Google’s specialized services.
Google will also provide a tool that allows website
owners to exclude content from being indexed
and used by Google. Finally, Google will abstain
from exclusive agreements with advertisers and
from any kind of restrictive clauses. The deal will
cover only the European Market (searches using
a European IP number) and will be in force for the
next five years. The Commission will choose a
monitoring authority to verify that all commitments
will be respected. Many of the complainants
reacted negatively to the Commissioner’s
statement and asked for a third market test in
order to detect other potential problems.

First trimester: Meeting with 18 complainants
First trimester: Commissions’ final decision
Consumers
EC launches consultation on fragrance allergens
It is estimated that between 1-3% of the
population in Europe has a skin allergy to
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
fragrances. The most frequent symptoms include
irritation, swelling and rash, but they may develop

14. into a chronic condition (eczema). An allergic
reaction to a substance depends on many factors,
including the genetic predisposition, age and
intensity of exposure to this substance.
In the on-going public consultation,
Commission’s services propose that:
The three substances which were found to be
unsafe should be banned from cosmetic
products,
Some substances present in fragrances may
cause a skin or respiratory allergy. The European
Commission has just launched an open public
consultation on skin allergens. Both synthetic
chemicals and substances of natural origin may
be skin allergens.
The current cosmetics EU Regulation includes a
list of substances which are forbidden in cosmetic
products and a list of substances which are
allowed, but subject to restrictions. The
Commission considers that there is a need for a
regular review of those lists (the last update on
fragrance allergens was done in 2003). The
Commission’s services requested the Scientific
Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) to
review this issue and in July 2012 the Committee
issued its opinion. It was followed by informal
consultations with the industry, consumer
organisations, healthcare professionals and the
Member States of the EU.
the
Additional allergens should be subject to the
obligation of individual labelling on the package
of a cosmetic product. In other words, they have
to be mentioned in the list of ingredients, in
addition to the words ‘parfum’ or ‘aroma’.
Because of the widespread use of fragrances it
may be very difficult to avoid them all. It is
therefore important to avoid those to which a
person is already sensitised
The results of the consultation will inform and
inspire future changes to the Cosmetics
Regulation.

14 May: End of public consultation
End 2014/ Beginning 2015: Expected entry into force
of the new regulation
European Parliament approves 2014-2020 consumers programme
On 14 January, the European Parliament
approved the EU 2014-2020 Consumer
Programme with an overwhelming majority (630
in favour, 42 against, 12 abstentions). With a total
budget of €189 million for the whole period, the
programme focuses on the funding of actions in
four key-areas:
Consolidation and enforcement of product
safety through effective EU-wide market
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February 2014
surveillance (such as RAPEX, the EU rapid alert
system for dangerous consumer products);
Information and education initiatives to make
consumers, particularly young consumers,
aware of their rights;
Development and reinforcement of consumer
rights, particularly through smart regulation and
improving access to legal remedies, including
alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. This
includes the measures set in the Consumer

15. Credit Directive which ensures that consumers
across Europe enjoy a common set of core
rights;
Enforcement of cooperation between national
authorities.
reference to the development of comparison
websites. The proposal will now pass to the
Council which will officially approve it in March
2014.

March: Council final approval expected
The European Parliament has also amended the
Commission’s proposal by introducing a
September 2017: mid-term review of the programme
Intellectual
Property Rights
EU Parliament adopts Directive on collective management of copyright
On 4 February, the European Parliament as
expected approved by an overwhelming majority
a directive on collective management of
copyright. According to the rapporteur Marielle
Gallo (Conservatives, France) this measure will
play a decisive role in the digital economy.
Collective rights management organizations
nevertheless expressed concerns about the
proposal; they fear that the new directive may
weaken their rights because of the large number
of exceptions to copyright.
The new draft directive imposes easier channels
to access music online through the collective
management of copyright and the granting of
licenses in more than one Member State, whilst
safeguarding rights holders. The aim of the
directive is also to see European Music Platforms
develop by ensuring that music providers will be
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
able to obtain multi-country licenses more easily.
The directive is expected to be formally adopted
by the Council in due course.
Another issue is the three months public
consultation launched on 5 December by the
Commission with the aim of modernizing EU rules
on copyright. The debate on this subject is
expected to be quite intense as the European
Composer & Songwriter Alliance decided to
launch a petition against “the dismantling of rights
of creators in Europe”

February: end of public consultation
Spring: proposal to review EU copyright framework
2016: partial implementation at national level
2018: full implementation at national level
2021: review of the Directive

16. International
Trade
EC wants to include financial services in EU/US free trade agreement
On 27 January the Commission released a
discussion document describing the EU position
within the Transatlantic Trade and Investment
Partnership (TTIP) negotiations. The paper
mainly presents arguments that highlight why
financial services regulation should be included in
the talks. Since the beginning of the negotiation
process in July, the Commission is facing a strong
opposition from the United States on that point.
The paper clearly says: “The EU believes that
financial regulation is too important to be
discussed ad hoc, in informal settings at the very
last minute, under market pressure”. This
statement sounds like an announcement to the
US counterparts that Europe is not going to
release pressure on that point. The question is
very controversial also because within the EU
there are fears that including this issue in the TTIP
could weaken the European financial services
regulation.
On other fronts, the Commission announced on
22 January the opening of a three months public
consultation on the topic of investor-to-state
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February 2014
dispute settlement. To increase the transparency
of the negotiations the Commission also
established a special advisory group composed
by 14 advisory experts in EU trade policy that
represent a broad range of European interests.
The experts will advise the European negotiator
in chief, Ignacio Garcia Bercero, during the talks.
The agenda is going to be busy during the next
months: on 17-18 February the European
Commissioner for Trade, Karel De Gucht will
meet his American counterpart, Michael Froman.
The fourth round of negotiations will take place
from 10 to 14 March in Brussels, just before the
visit of the US president Obama to Brussels on 26
March. Commissioner De Gucht aspires to leave
office with an agreement reached by November.

17-18 February: De Gucht – Froman meeting
10-14 March: Fourth round of negotiations in Brussels
26 March: US president Obama visits EU in Brussels
End of April: Deadline of the public consultation
October: Expected final agreement

17. Research and
Development
EU funds 67 projects bringing research closer to market
On 6 February, the European Research Council
(ERC) announced the final 34 projects of a total
of 67 under the programme 'Proof of Concept' to
receive up to €150,000 each to bring their
pioneering 'blue sky' research closer to the
market. This top-up funding can cover activities
aimed at commercial and societal applications,
such as establishing intellectual property rights,
investigating
commercial
and
business
opportunities or technical validation.
The projects selected this time cover everything
from an exploration of the molecular foundations
of psychiatric disorders to technological
innovations that could help rescue skiers caught
in avalanches or measure extreme waves. The
2014 call for proposals under 'Proof of Concept'
is currently open (to ERC grant holders) with a
first deadline of 1 April 2014.

1st April: Deadline for submission of grant request
Taxation
EC denonces lack of ambitions on Financial Transaction Tax
On 4 February Members of the European
Parliament discussed the introduction of a Financial
Transaction Tax (FTT) in 11 eurozone Member
States. According to Taxation Commissioner
Algirdas Šemeta, despite initial enthusiasm, the
initiative is currently “in danger” by “a lack of political
steering within the council”. Key Parliamentarians
agreed with the Commissioner on the point that
many States had abandoned their commitments.
The introduction of an FTT tax has been strongly
tackled by the United-Kingdom which initiated legal
action at the EU Court of Justice contesting the
potential extraterritorial impact of the tax. But even
in countries which were formally in favor of the FTT
(like France), the fear of “huge risks” and
competition distortions stopped the legislative
process. Despite these fears, a survey shows that
INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014
64% of the European citizens support the financial
tax. The Greek Presidency is going to hold a
ministerial policy debate on 18 February at the
meeting of economics and finance ministers with
the hope to reach a “political agreement” during the
subsequent ministerial meeting of 6 May. France
and Germany are likely to propose on 19 February
to remove from the scope of FTT “transactions that
are closely related to the real economy or whose
aim is to ensure market liquidity”. The Commission
wishes to reach a political agreement on the
question before the May elections.

19 February: Ecofin Council
6 May: Ecofin Council

18. INSIGHTS BRUSSELS
February 2014