Key developments and materials

European Commission enforces Booking.com's compliance with EU Digital Markets Act

The European Commission has announced that, as of 14 November 2024, Booking Holdings Inc. (BHI) must ensure its online intermediation service, Booking.com, complies with all relevant obligations under the EU Digital Markets Act (DMA). This development marks a significant shift in the European tourism ecosystem, as hotels, car rental companies, and other travel service providers are no longer required to guarantee best prices on Booking.com. EU businesses can now freely differentiate prices and conditions across various online sales channels. Booking has published a compliance report to demonstrate its compliance with the EU DMA, as well as an independently audited description of techniques it uses for profiling consumers. The Commission will analyse the report to assess whether the implemented measures are effective in achieving the objectives of the relevant obligations under the EU DMA. Interested stakeholders are also invited to provide input on the Commission's assessment.

European Commission releases initial draft of General-Purpose AI Code of Practice

The European Commission has published the first draft of its General-Purpose Artificial Intelligence (AI) Code of Practice, developed by independent experts appointed by the AI Office. This draft, based on multi-stakeholder consultations and workshops, will undergo further discussions in working groups and a plenary session. The Code aims to facilitate the implementation of the EU AI Act rules, which come into effect in August 2025. Key aspects of the Code include details on transparency, copyright enforcement, systemic risk taxonomy, risk assessment methodologies, and mitigation measures for advanced general-purpose AI models. Stakeholders are invited to provide feedback by 28 November 2024, with the final document expected in May 2025.

Commission consults on guidance on AI system definition and prohibitions under EU AI Act

The European Commission's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Office has initiated a targeted stakeholder consultation process to gather input on the future guidelines for defining AI systems and the implementation of AI practices deemed to pose unacceptable risk under the EU AI Act. The guidelines aim to assist national authorities, providers, and deployers in complying with the EU AI Act's rules on the practices before the relevant provisions become applicable on 2 February 2025. Stakeholders, including AI system providers, businesses, national authorities, academia, research institutions, and civil society, are invited to submit their comments until 11 December 2024. The inputs received will inform the final guidelines, which are scheduled for publication in early 2025.

Comment—Meta, Google and more seek clarity on AI model training under EU privacy law

MLex: Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Google and X have all suspended the training of generative AI models in the EU over personal data protection concerns, and they are hoping that watchdogs there will soon provide legal clarity on how the EU General Data Protection Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (EU GDPR) applies to model training. Until European data protection authorities reach a consensus, particularly over the use of 'legitimate interest' as a legal basis for data processing, tech companies will stay away.