http://www.conpolicy.de/ Conpolicy-News en http://www.conpolicy.de/typo3conf/ext/tt_news/ext_icon.gif http://www.conpolicy.de/ 18 16 Conpolicy-News TYPO3 - get.content.right http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:04:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/britische-wettbewerbsbehoerde-kritisiert-unzureichenden-wettbewerb-bei-garantieverlaengerungen.html Yesterday, the British Office of Fair Trading (OFT) published the results of a market study on extended warranties in the market for electricity goods. The study highlights that despite some improvements in the 1 billion Pound market several competition concerns remain. The study shows... The study shows in particular:

• Competition remains limited by the retailers' 'point of sale' advantage in being able to sell extended warranties at the same time as they sell the electrical goods.
• Only around a quarter of consumers shop around for extended warranties, which remains low compared to many other insurance products.
• When buying an extended warranty at the same time as an electrical good, shoppers do not have enough relevant information to make an informed decision about whether the extended warranty is value for money.

To address these concerns, the largest retail providers of extended warranties, Dixons, Comet and Argos have agreed to: 

• Establish, maintain and publicise an extended warranties comparison website, to make shopping around easier.
• Provide more accessible information via in-store leaflets, including on the availability of alternative providers.
• Conduct regular independent mystery shopping exercises to help ensure shoppers get accurate information from sales staff - and report back to the OFT on the results.

Ann Pope, Director in the OFT’s Goods and Consumer Group, argued: “Millions of extended warranties are sold in the UK each year and we remain concerned that, despite recent improvements, this market does not work as well as it could for consumers. We welcome the retailers' initiative in offering undertakings and we now want to hear from consumers and others whether they think these will lead to improvements.“ Further information: http://www.oft.gov.uk/news-and-updates/press/2012/07-12 and http://www.oft.gov.uk/OFTwork/markets-work/othermarketswork/electrical-goods/ Source: OFT]]> Tue, 07 Feb 2012 13:04:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/britische-verbraucher-surfen-immer-schneller-werbeaussagen-lassen-aber-weiterhin-zu-wuenschen-uebr.html Today the UK communication regulator, Ofcom, published a study which shows that UK consumers are achieving 22 percent faster broadband speeds at home than they were 12 months ago. In November 2011, the average actual UK residential broadband speed was 7.6Mbit/s, compared with 6.2Mbit/s a year... The study also highlights that previous results repeatedly showed a significant difference between advertised speeds and speeds actually received by consumers. In April 2012 new rules will need to be applied which require that speed claims should be achievable by at least 10 percent of the relevant internet service provider’s customer base and they should be based on robust and reasonably representative data. Adam Scorer, Director of Policy and External Affairs at Consumer Focus, argued that: “It’s good news that customers are getting faster broadband speeds. But there is still often a very clear gap between the maximum speeds advertised by suppliers and what people actually receive. … We hope that new rules from the regulator coming into effect in April will tackle this and that enforcement action will be taken.” Further information: http://media.ofcom.org.uk/2012/02/02/jump-in-uk-broadband-speeds/ and http://www.consumerfocus.org.uk/news/faster-broadband-must-be-followed-up-with-honest-advertising Source: Ofcom and Consumer Focus]]> Thu, 02 Feb 2012 16:25:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/eu-kommission-schlaegt-umfassende-neuregelungen-im-datenschutz-vor.html Today the European Commission proposed a comprehensive reform of the EU’s 1995 data protection rules. The objectives of the proposal are to strengthen online privacy rights and boost Europe’s digital economy. The proposals include a policy Communication setting out the Commission’s objectives and... Today the European Commission proposed a comprehensive reform of the EU’s 1995 data protection rules. The objectives of the proposal are to strengthen online privacy rights and boost Europe’s digital economy. The proposals include a policy Communication setting out the Commission’s objectives and two legislative proposals: a Regulation setting out a general EU framework for data protection and a Directive on protecting personal data processed for the purpose of prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution of criminal offences and related judicial activities. The key elements of the propsal are:

• A single set of rules on data protection, valid across the EU.
• Companies and organisations must notify the national supervisory authority of serious data breaches as soon as possible (if feasible within 24 hours).
• People will have easier access to their own data and be able to transfer personal data from one service provider to another more easily (right to data portability). This will improve competition among services.
• A ‘right to be forgotten’ will help people better manage data protection risks online: people will be able to delete their data if there are no legitimate grounds for retaining it.
• EU rules must apply if personal data is handled abroad by companies that are active in the EU market and offer their services to EU citizens.
• Independent national data protection authorities will be strengthened so they can better enforce the EU rules at home. They will be empowered to fine companies that violate EU data protection rules. This can lead to penalties of up to €1 million or up to 2% of the global annual turnover of a company. 

Viviane Reding, EU Justice Commissioner explained: “The protection of personal data is a fundamental right for all Europeans, but citizens do not always feel in full control of their personal data. My proposals will help build trust in online services because people will be better informed about their rights and in more control of their information.“ Monique Goyens, Director General of the European Consumer Organization BEUC welcomed the proposal: “Today the EU is taking a large step towards giving data rights back to its rightful owners, individuals themselves.“ The Commission’s proposals will now be passed on to the European Parliament and EU Member States for discussions. They will take effect two years after they have been adopted.   Further information: http://ec.europa.eu/justice/data-protection/document/review2012/com_2012_9_en.pdf, http://ec.europa.eu/justice/data-protection/document/review2012/com_2012_11_en.pdf, http://ec.europa.eu/justice/data-protection/document/review2012/com_2012_10_en.pdf and http://docshare.beuc.org/Common/GetFile.asp?ID=42447&mfd=off&LogonName=Guesten   Sources: European Commission and BEUC]]> Thu, 26 Jan 2012 09:43:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/eu-untersuchung-zeigt-webseiten-die-verbraucherkredite-verkaufen-bleiben-hinter-gesetzlichen-anfo.html Yesterday, on the 10th of January 2012 the European Commission published the results of an EU-wide investigation of websites offering consumer credit. The key question was whether consumers are receiving the information to which they are entitled under EU consumer law before signing a consumer... The investigation was conducted by the EU Member States national enforcement authorities. In total they checked more than 562 websites across the 27 Member States plus Norway and Iceland. The result was that 393 (70 percent) of the sites were flagged for further investigation. In Germany even 77 percent of the websites (20 out of 26) were seen as being inadequate. The national authorities will now contact financial institutions and credit intermediaries about the suspected irregularities and ask them to clarify or take corrective action. The following key problems were identified:

• Missing information in consumer credit advertising: advertising on 258 (46% of websites checked) did not include all the standard information required by the Consumer Credit Directive, e.g. i) the annual percentage rate of charge (APR), which is essential to compare offers, ii) information on whether charges on obligatory ancillary services (e.g. insurance) were included in the total cost, or iii) on the duration of the credit agreement;
• Omission of key information on the offer: 244 (43%) websites did not give clear information about all the different elements of the total cost, e.g. i) on the type of interest rate, (fixed, variable or both), ii) on the duration of the credit (if applicable), and iii) on some of the costs related to the credit (e.g. an arrangement fee);
• Misleading presentation of the costs where the cost of the credit is displayed in a way which is false or could deceive consumers, e.g. i) in the way the price is calculated, or ii) if the consumer is not informed that beyond the cost of the consumer credit itself there is an added obligatory insurance. 116 websites (20%) of the websites displayed this kind of problem.

EU Consumer Commissioner John Dalli commentated the results: "When people look for credit they sometimes discover that this credit turns out to be more expensive than it had originally appeared, because important information was sometimes unclear or missing. […] It is therefore very important that businesses provide consumers with the correct and necessary information. And it is the role of the Commission to work together with national enforcers to make this happen."   For further information: http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/12/6&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en and http://www.BaFin.de/cln_235/nn_722564/SharedDocs/Artikel/DE/Service/Meldungen/2012/meldung__120110__untersuchung__verbraucherkredite.html?__nnn=true Source: European Commission]]> Wed, 11 Jan 2012 04:04:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/label-soll-chinesische-verbraucher-im-onlinehandel-besser-schuetzen-studienbeginn.html In November 2011 a study on the status quo of consumer protection in Chinese E-Commerce was published. One of the recommendations of the study was the introduction of an E-Commerce label that could better protect Chinese consumers from fraud and other detrimental practices in the Internet. The... study on the status quo of consumer protection in Chinese E-Commerce was published. One of the recommendations of the study was the introduction of an E-Commerce label that could better protect Chinese consumers from fraud and other detrimental practices in the Internet. The Chinese government picked up on the recommendation and a German-Chinese expert group began to work on this new project this week. The objective of the experts is to develop a concrete proposal for such an E-Commerce label until mid-2012. In so doin

• key challenges for Chinese consumers in E-commerce will be identified,
• conditions for the introduction of a label in China will be assessed,
• best international practices will be reviewed,
• an integration of mechanisms for Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) will be ensured and
• partners for this project will be identified.

The project is financed jointly by German International Cooperation (GIZ) and the Chinese State Administration for Industry and Commerce (SAIC). On the German side the following experts are involved in this project: Hans-Wolfgang Micklitz (European University Institute, Florence), Kai Purnhagen (Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich), Gerald Spindler (Georg-August-University Göttingen) and Christian Thorun (ConPolicy). Source: ConPolicy - Institute for Consumer Policy ]]> Tue, 13 Dec 2011 13:53:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/conpolicy-wird-fuer-die-europaeische-kommission-verhaltensoekonomische-studien-erstellen.html A consortium which is led by London Economics and which comprises also of Nuffield College (University of Oxford), Ipsos MORI and ConPolicy has entered a framework contract with the European Commission. The objective is to provide studies related to consumer and citizen behaviour by means of... London Economics and which comprises also of Nuffield College (University of Oxford), Ipsos MORI and ConPolicy has entered a framework contract with the European Commission. The objective is to provide studies related to consumer and citizen behaviour by means of behavioural methods in the coming four years. The Commission’s Work Programme for 2011, adopted by Commission Decision C (2010) 9023 of 16.12.2010, provides that DG SANCO, in line with its data strategy, will continue its efforts to upgrade the content, quality and dissemination of its evidence base of statistics and other qualitative and quantitative data relating to consumers and their concerns. The objective of the Framework Contract is to provide the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers (EAHC), DG SANCO and other Commission Services with studies related to consumer and citizen behaviour, as a result of a sound, professional and scientific analysis. The following tasks will be performed under the Framework Contract:

• Preparatory review of the behavioural economics literature, gathering of data on prevailing commercial practices, collection of survey data on consumer’s self-reported preferences, and review of policy remedies;
• Collection of first-hand information through behavioural laboratory and/or field experiments and also, where deemed necessary, complementary surveys;
• Analysis of results and policy recommendations.

Source: ConPolicy - Institute for Consumer Policy]]> Mon, 28 Nov 2011 12:45:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/netzwerk-verbraucherforschung-beim-bmelv-konstituiert.html On World Consumer Day the German Federal Minister for Consumer Protection Ilse Aigner announced the creation of a “Network Consumer Research”. Today the Network met for a constitutional meeting in Berlin. The objective of the meeting was to exchange views about the state of consumer research... On World Consumer Day the German Federal Minister for Consumer Protection Ilse Aigner announced the creation of a “Network Consumer Research”. Today the Network met for a constitutional meeting in Berlin.  The objective of the meeting was to exchange views about the state of consumer research in Germany, to identify gaps in current research and to discuss how the network should operate in the future. In her opening remarks Federal Minister Aigner emphasised the necessity to strengthen consumer research.  The objective should be to base consumer policy increasingly on evidence in order to better protect consumers and to enable them to make conscious decisions. Further input was given by the following people:

• Dr. Grugel, Director General at the BMELV: Presentation of the new office for the coordination of the network at the BVL
• Gerd Billen, Executive Director of the Federation of German Consumer Organisations: Consumer research in Germany - political debate and expectations of consumer organisations
• Prof. Lucia Reisch, Copenhagen Business School / Zeppelin University: State of Consumer Research in the social sciences in Germany
• Prof. Schmidt-Kessel, University of Bayreuth: Consumer research as a basis to enforce consumer rights
• Prof. Peter Kenning, Zeppelin University: Consumer research from the viewpoint of behavioural- and neuroeconomics

The key result of the meeting was that the participants recognized the need to improve collaboration. In spring next year the network will meet again. ConPolicy Director Dr Christian Thorun is a member of the network.   Further information: http://www.bmelv.de/SharedDocs/Pressemitteilungen/2011/252-AI-Netzwerk%20Verbraucherforschung.html and http://www.bmelv.de/SharedDocs/Reden/2011/11-24-AI-Netzwerk-Verbraucherforschung.html Source: ConPolicy - Institute for Consumer Policy]]> Thu, 24 Nov 2011 17:44:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/studie-zum-verbraucherschutz-im-onlinehandel-in-china-und-deutschland-veroeffentlicht.html E-Commerce is growing rapidly in China and Germany. A research project, at which ConPolicy participated, investigated how E-Commerce should best be regulated to improve consumer protection. The results of this study are now published with C.H.Beck München/Hart Oxford/Nomos Baden-Baden. The study... E-Commerce is growing rapidly in China and Germany. A research project, at which ConPolicy participated, investigated how E-Commerce should best be regulated to improve consumer protection. The results of this study are now published with C.H.Beck München/Hart Oxford/Nomos Baden-Baden. The study concludes that while both countries see the necessity to regulate the E-Commerce market, the approaches differ quite significantly regarding the objectives, the scope and the instruments for regulation. The Chinese approach is heavily based on state control which leaves little scope for self-regulation. On the other hand, the German - and the approach chosen in the European Union -  is based primarily on self-regulation and the role of private actors.  The study develops, condenses and compares the key regulatory approaches on E-Commerce in China, Germany and the European Union. It presents the legal framework and how it is interpreted and on the basis of an interdisciplinary analysis it compares both systems. The study was financed by German International Cooperation (GIZ) and the Chinese State Administration for Industry and Commerce. The following experts participated in the research project: China: Li Anyu (University of International Business and Economics, Beijing); He Mingke, (Beijing Technology and Business University); Ala Musi (CEO of Beijing Deofar Information Technology Co., Ltd.). Germany and the EU: Malte Krüger (Fachhochschule Aschaffenburg); Hans-Wolfgang Micklitz (European University Institute, Florence); Kai Purnhagen (Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich); Gerald Spindler (Georg-August-University Göttingen); Christian Thorun (Institute for Consumer Policy, Bad Honnef). For further information: http://www.nomos-shop.de/13904 Quelle: ConPolicy - Institute for Consumer Policy]]> Mon, 21 Nov 2011 21:09:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/eu-kommission-stellt-neues-verbraucherprogramm-2014-2020-vor.html On Wednesday, 9th of November 2011 the European Commission adopted proposals for a new Consumer Programm. The programm will run from 2014 until 2020 with a budget of 197 million Euro. The objective of the programme is to place consumers at the center of the Single Market and empower them to... th of November 2011 the European Commission adopted proposals for a new Consumer Programm. The programm will run from 2014 until 2020 with a budget of 197 million Euro. The objective of the programme is to place consumers at the center of the Single Market and empower them to participate actively in the market and make it work for them. The programme aims to build on the previous programmes by focussing action on empowerment of the consumers through safety, information and education, rights and redress and enforcement actions. Measures include:

• Monitoring and enforcing safety through EU-wide systems 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. This includes also the continuing development of the evidence base for better policy making at both EU and national level on consumer issues, with, for example, the Consumer Markets Scoreboard which maps out the markets that fail consumers in Europe.
• Delivering legislation aimed at enhancing consumer rights, for example the Consumer Credit Directive which ensures that consumers across Europe enjoy a common set of core rights, including the right to receive clear and comparable information before committing themselves financially; and Redress, where good preparatory work has been done, particularly, on Alternative Dispute Resolution.
• Enforcement action through "Sweeps" operations, which are co-ordinated by the European Commission and carried out simultaneously by national consumer enforcement authorities to see where consumer rights are being compromised or denied.

The proposal will now be discussed by the European Parliament and Council of Ministers, with a view to adoption by the end of 2013, to allow for the start of the new health and consumer programmes in 2014.   Further information: http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/11/1317 Source: European Commission]]> Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:29:00 +0100 http://www.conpolicy.de/en/news/news/article/startschuss-fuer-neues-kompetenzzentrum-verbraucherforschung-nrw.html On Wednesday, 9th of November 2011, Science Minister Svenja Schulze and Consumer Minister Johannes Remmel of the German State of North Rhine Westfalia (NRW) signed an agreement with the Consumer Advice Center NRW (Verbraucherzentrale NRW) for the foundation of a Competence Center Consumer Research... th of November 2011, Science Minister Svenja Schulze and Consumer Minister Johannes Remmel of the German State of North Rhine Westfalia (NRW) signed an agreement with the Consumer Advice Center NRW (Verbraucherzentrale NRW) for the foundation of a Competence Center Consumer Research NRW. In a first step the state government provides 660.000 Euro until 2014 to finance an office and to launch first projects. The objective of the Competence Center is to enhance consumer research. Questions such as what impact new economic and social circumstance have on individual consumers or how the concept of sustainability is accepted by consumers will be analysed. The objective of the Center is to connect the already existing research infrastructure in NRW. Both Ministers highlight: “A future-oriented consumer and economic policy needs a theoretical foundation. Yet, until so far there is too little academic research on consumer protection.” Klaus Müller, Director of the Consumer Advice Center NRW, positivly recognized the initiative: “In an increasingly complex world of consumption, consumer policy and consumer advice work should be tailored to the real needs of consumers. This is why we need consumer research. The interdisciplinary Competence Center is a very valuable step into this direction.”   Further information: http://www.nrw.de/landesregierung/gruenes-licht-fuer-neues-kompetenzzentrum-verbraucherforschung-nrw-11825/ Source: State Government of NRW]]> Thu, 10 Nov 2011 12:25:00 +0100