Bitkom e.V.

The Digital Omnibus is a cornerstone of the EUs simplification agenda. Europes digital economy has long awaited this proposal, as companies are increasingly constrained by a fragmented regulatory framework and excessive reporting obligations.

Titel Ref. Ares(2025)8714928 - 14/10/2025 Digital Omnibus Call for Evidence 1 Position Paper on the Call for Evidence on the Digital Omnibus At a glance Toward a Coherent EU Tech Framework Initial position The last mandate has transformed the legal landscape of Europe’s digital economy, marked by a broad set of new regulations and directives from the European Commission.

Opening of the attached position paper · the full paper is on the Commission’s record (source link above)

Europes circular economy needs a clear, harmonised, and practical framework that drives innovation, simplifies compliance, and ensures consistent enforcement. Bitkom emphasizes aligning regulations, leveraging digitalisation, and promoting product longevity to create a transparent, efficient, and competitive circular economy.

Bitkom welcomes the opportunity to share its perspective on the EUs public procurement directives, which are a key pillar of a well-functioning single market. Overall the directives are in general fit for purpose, they provide an adequate baseline for the core elements of procurements in the EU.

Support for shifting MDR and IVDR to Annex I, Section B of the AI Act: Bitkom supports the proposed transfer, as it can reduce duplicative regulation and avoid unnecessary double burden for AI-based medical devices.

Bitkom expressly welcomes the Commissions ambition to deepen the Single Market for connectivity and to modernise the legal framework. The Commission rightly recognises the need to strengthen the entrepreneurial scope for innovation, scale, and resilience in a competitive environment. We especially see merit in the proposals intention to strengthen European spectrum policy.

Bitkom welcomed the Commission’s draft. The EU.Inc can make this much easier and faster: fully digital, within 48 hours and uniformly across the 27 Member States. The EU.Inc would, for the first time, introduce uniform rules on employee share ownership and taxation. In addition, fast, digital and low-cost processes make it easier for investors to invest in start-ups and scale-ups.

Filed in German · English published by the European Commission

Open source is a key enabler for Europes digital sovereignty, competitiveness, and cybersecurity. To be effective, EU policy must strengthen Europes capacity to sustain, govern, and adopt open technologies as part of a global ecosystem, addressing existing barriers in funding, procurement, maintenance, and market integration. Please see the attached document for the complete statement.

Bitkom welcomes the new proposal, especially regarding the twin green and digital transition under the European Green Deal. The European Green Deal is an important and necessary step towards achieving the climate targets. To reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, increasing energy efficiency in buildings and expanding the use of renewable energy is crucial.

Filed in German · English published by the European Commission

Position paper Bitkom principles for the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Act 04. August 2021 General Remarks Bitkom welcomes the Commission proposal’s risk-based approach of the AI Act presented in April 2021. In order to achieve the intended results it needs to be more precise as outlined below in this paper.

Opening of the attached position paper · the full paper is on the Commission’s record (source link above)

Bitkom welcomes the open consultation approach of the AI Inception Impact Assessment of Assessment of the European Commission for a proposal for a legal act of the European Parliament and the European Council regarding the „requirements for Artificial Intelligence“ (Future regulatory framework for AI in the European Union).

Bitkom e.V. welcomes the European Commission’s objective to strengthen human rights through corporate sustainability due diligence and thus contribute to the global economy’s resilience and long-term prospects. Nevertheless, recognising the complexities and limits of statutory measures as well as the capacity for companies to exert influence, is crucial. Please find attached our feedback on the proposal.

Bitkom e.V. (Germany's digital association) welcomes the efforts of the European Commission to create more transparency in competition when it comes to environmental claims and to avoid greenwashing. However, in our view, the present proposal for a directive on substantiation and communication of explicit environmental claims (Green Claims Directive) does not appear to be suitable for achieving the objectives…

Bitkom welcomes the European Commission's intention to work towards products that are as sustainable, environmentally conscious and circular as possible. With the revision of the existing ecodesign directive, the European Commission is taking an important step towards a sustainable and climate-neutral Europe. Please find attached our feedback on the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation Proposal (ESPR).

Titel Ref. Ares(2026)4818540 - 12/05/2026 Revision of the EU Cybersecurity Act Position of the German digital industry on the European Commission’s proposal for a CSA-2 1 Cybersecurity Act 2 Content 1 Summary 3 2 TITLE II: THE EUROPEAN UNION AGENCY FOR CYBERSECURITY 5 TITLE III: EUROPEAN CYBERSECURITY CERTIFICATION FRAMEWORK 8 3 Article 71: Objectives and scope of the European cybersecurity certification framework 9…

Opening of the attached position paper · the full paper is on the Commission’s record (source link above)

Position Paper 2026 May NIS-2 Amendments Summary The NIS-2 Directive set the goal to establish a unified legal framework to uphold cybersecurity in critical sectors across the EU. By defining technical and methodological requirements for cybersecurity risk management measures, it aims to create a harmonised baseline level of protection.

Opening of the attached position paper · the full paper is on the Commission’s record (source link above)

Position Paper June 2025 Cybersecurity Act Revision Summary The Cybersecurity Act (CSA) was introduced in 2019 as a central instrument of the European Union to strengthen the cyber security of information and communication technologies. At the time, there were no other European harmonized requirements for products concerning cybersecurity.

Opening of the attached position paper · the full paper is on the Commission’s record (source link above)

A central issue in the current debate is the ability to analyse lawfully accessible information at scale. A reliable TDM framework is key digital infrastructure, not only for AI development but also for research, cybersecurity, healthcare and broader economic productivity.

Bitkom welcomes the European Commission’s Data Act proposal and its intention to increase the breadth and depth of data usage and innovation within the European Single Market as this will help to fuel the digital transition by offering countless new opportunities to European citizens and businesses.

Bitkom highly welcomes the EU Commission's intention to prepare a review of the current framework to foster competitiveness, competition and investment in the European telecommunications market. An EU-wide harmonised market improves the conditions for investment and expansion in the telecommunications sector.

Summary Directive 2000/31/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council on certain legal as-pects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the internal market (Directive on electronic commerce) (‘eCommerce Directive’ – ‘eCD’) was adopted on 8 June 2000.

Bitkom welcomes the opportunity to give feedback on the Commission’s proposal. We are convinced that a uniform European health Data Space with transparent, efficient and innovation-promoting conditions is the central component of a connected and learn-as-you-go health sector. Our position paper provides an initial assessment of the proposal and highlights a number of points, which should be critically reviewed.

Bitkom strongly welcomes the European Commission’s efforts to create a European Health Data Space (EHDS) to unlock the potential of health data for sustainable and resilient healthcare systems. Access and (re)use of health data are preconditions to a digital transformation of healthcare systems and set the cornerstones for patient-oriented and data-driven health ecosystems for the future.

If done right, the European Commission’s initial proposal on the Data Governance Act (DGA) has the potential to be an important step towards a European data economy. While previous discussions about the use of data have focused primarily on the important topic of data protection, there is an increasing awareness for the innovative potential of data, which is why we welcome that the DGA addresses all types of data…

Bitkom appreciates the opportunity to provide feedback on the Commissions proposal for a Cyber Resilience Act. Please find our position paper attached. We welcome the proposal to create a more efficient legal framework to improve cybersecurity in Europe. Nevertheless, some important aspects should be optimized and clarified during the legislative process.

The European Standardisation System (ESS) continues to be a well-functioning framework that ensures Europes global competitiveness by delivering high-quality standards. The New Legislative Framework (NLF) has been pivotal to the success of the Single Market.

Bitkom supports the establishment of Digital Product Passports and welcomes the draft implementing regulation on the DPP Registry as an important step towards a functioning European DPP infrastructure. The draft provides a useful basis for implementation, but several aspects require further clarification to ensure legal certainty, cybersecurity, operational resilience and practical scalability for companies.

Bitkom welcomes the reform of the UCC as it has the potential to deliver a more efficient, secure and business-friendly Customs Union. However, achieving this goal will require a common interpretation of the UCC by Member States and the actual implementation of various proposed improved customs mechanisms.

Please find Bitkom's five principles for the functioning of the digital economy and fair competition attached: 1.) Retain core competition mechanics: Scope should be based on objective evidence. 2.) Taking diversity into account: Obligations should not follow a one size fits all approach. 3.) Reliable rules: Application and rules must be clear and targeted.

Bitkom e.V. is the German Digital Association and represents more than 2000 member companies from the digital economy. Bitkom members employ more than 2 million employees in Germany. Members include more than 1000 medium-sized businesses, more than 500 start-ups and almost all global players. Thank you for the opportunity to comment and our detailed feedback can be found in the attached file.

Filed in German · English published by the European Commission

Bitkom welcomes the European Commissions initiative to develop the EU Quantum Act. The Act is a key step in implementing the Quantum Europe Strategy and in creating the framework conditions needed for Europe to remain competitive in quantum technologies. The EU Quantum Act should strengthen coordinated and strategic action across Member States.

The EUs digital regulatory framework has expanded rapidly over the past decade, including the GDPR, Data Act, Data Governance Act, Digital Services Act, and Digital Markets Act. While each of these initiatives pursues legitimate objectives, their cumulative effect has created a regulatory framework that is increasingly complex and difficult to navigate.

As a matter of fact cyber threats have increased manifold since the adoption of the first NIS Directive. That's why we see the imperative need for a more harmonised and future-proofed European cybersecurity framework. The proposal already strikes a reasonable balance between targeted regulatory interventions and strengthening the EU's cyber-resilience holistically.

Bitkom strongly welcomes the integration of relevant stakeholder opinions in order to streamline public and private efforts striving for an improved cybersecurity throughout the European Union (EU). That is why we would like to seize the opportunity and provide our feedback already at an early stage of the revision of the Directive (EU) 2016/1148 concerning measures for implementing an equivalent and commonly high…

Bitkom supports the European Business Wallet in principle as an important element of a European trust infrastructure for digital business and administrative processes. However, against the backdrop of the current negotiations on the proposed regulation and the recently discussed amendments, Bitkom sees a need for targeted improvements: Clear and swiftly adopted implementing acts are required, along with ambitious…

In the attached position paper, Bitkom highlights the key challenges organizations face in B2B and B2G contexts and to some extent in B2C, B2M and B2E and outlines essential use cases alongside technical and legal requirements to be integrated into the forthcoming EU legislation on the EUBW.

Bitkom welcomes the European Commissions call for evidence on the development of a Digital Action Plan for the water sector. We consider this initiative an opportunity to align the digital transformation with sustainable water management, resource protection, and European competitiveness.

The German digital association Bitkom would like to thank the Commission for the opportunity to contribute to the call for evidence for an impact assessment for the planned Quality Jobs Act. Please find attached our detailed position paper. Our key positions include: The EU should prioritise initiatives aimed at streamlining regulatory frameworks and fostering competitiveness.

Bitkom welcomes the opportunity to contribute to the European Commission's Call for Evidence (CfE) regarding the evaluation of the Audiovisual Media Services Directive (AVMSD). In a rapidly evolving media environment, this evaluation represents a crucial moment to assess the effectiveness and relevance of the current regulatory framework.

Bitkom supports the EU Commission's goal of further digitalizing the transport sector and making things noticeably easier for citizens and mobility providers in the EU by digitalizing vehicle registration documents and processes.

Position Paper Proposal for a Regulation on general product safety September 21st 2021 Bitkom appreciates the opportunity to provide its views and feedback on the Proposal for a regulation on general product safety adopted by the European Commission. We very much welcome the fact that the proposed regulation now approaches both the New Legislative Framework and the Market Surveillance Regulation.

Opening of the attached position paper · the full paper is on the Commission’s record (source link above)

For Bitkom and its members, the safety of the products placed on the market is the top priority. Therefore the General Product Safety Directive (GPSD) has a high priority for us and we appreciate the opportunity to provide feedback on the roadmap for its revision. Since its enforcement the GPSD has made a significant contribution to the safety of consumer products.

Stellungnahme zum Vorschlag der Europäischen Kommission für eine Richtlinie über die Haftung für fehlerhafte Produkte Seite 1|6 1. Ausgangslage Nach einer im Jahr 2018 durchgeführten Bewertung der Richtlinie 85/374/EWG („Produkthaftungsrichtlinie“) wies diese Mängel im Bereich der neuen digitalen Technologien auf. Am 28.

Opening of the attached position paper · the full paper is on the Commission’s record (source link above)

Bitkom welcomes the opportunity to provide feedback on the European Commission’s Inception Impact Assessment on adapting liability rules to the digital age and artificial intelligence. Please find our detailed position on this initiative in the document attached.

Bitkom read the Commissions «Proposal for a [Directive/Regulation] [] as regards the digitalisation and alignment of common specifications» with great interest and would like to provide input. Shortly summarized, we believe: -> Common Specification should be designed as a clearly limited fallback option in alignment of Art. 20 of the Machinery Regulation and developed with industry involvement.

The Digital Decade policy programme has established essential goals and measurable indicators for assessing Europes progress in digital infrastructure, digital skills, the digital transformation of businesses, and the digitalization of public services. It is an important monitoring system that should be promoted and improved.

Bitkom appreciates the opportunity to give feedback on the Proposal for a Regulation on Promoting Fairness and Transparency for Users of Online Intermediation Services, voicing the consolidated opinion of its affected members as stated in the attached position paper.

Bitkom welcomes the Commissions proposal for a directive on VAT rules for the digital age as a meaningful initiative to simplify the current VAT system. In the attached position paper, we elaborate on our considerations with regards to 1) Digital Reporting Requirements, 2) the VAT treatment of the platform economy, and 3) single VAT registration in the EU and IOSS.

Bitkom welcomes the Commission’s draft, as it is another important building block for secure digital identities and trust services in the European Union. Europe’s digital sovereignty will be strengthened by establishing digital identities and allowing them to be used independently by EU citizens across the EU. Bitkom thanked for the opportunity to comment in the consultation process. Please find attached the opinion.

Filed in German · English published by the European Commission

Bitkom welcomes the opportunity to provide feedback and thoughts on the European Commission’s legal proposal for amending Regulation 1025/2012 on standardisation as presented together with the European standardisation strategy on 2nd February 2022. Please find attached our position paper.

Bitkom welcomes the Commissions proposal to accelerate the rollout of instant payments as an opportunity to drive further innovation in payment services. We recognise the opportunity to provide feedback on the proposed regulation. Our preliminary position paper lays out our ideas on how the draft regulation can be further developed with regard to the scope, pricing, and IBAN name checking.

Filed in German · English published by the European Commission

According to Bitkom, instant payments offer added value across all payment use cases. As supporters of a technology-neutral approach, however, we also want to stress the merit of digital payment solutions in general. Hence, we consider instant payments as complementary to existing products and as enabler for new payment solutions and products (e.g. Instant Lending).

We welcome the European Commission public consultation period on the Draft implementing decision and its Annex to discuss the standard contractual clauses (SCCs) for transferring personal data to non-EU countries as this is an important issue and an opportunity for stakeholders across all industries to provide input. Please find attached our detailed Position Paper.

Bitkom welcomes the EU Commission's initiative with the aim to facilitate the use of data for a smarter, safer, and sustainable mobility ecosystem. However, we would like to also underline that relying on market principles will be key to fostering the enormous potential of data-driven solutions in the field of mobility.

Bitkom agrees that the existing framework for protecting critical infrastructures is inadequate in the light of increasing interdependencies and evolving risks. The changing nature of the threat landscape requires both better protection and more investment in resilience capacities to secure our critical infrastructure.

As the voice of the German digital economy, Bitkom highly appreciates the opportunity to provide feedback on the European Commission’s consultation on the possible review of the existing European Critical Infrastructure Directive. Please take our extensive feedback from the attached file.

Zusammenfassung Bitkom unterstützt das Vorhaben der Europäischen Kommission, die Richtlinien über die Zusammenarbeit der Verwaltungsbehörden im Bereich der Besteuerung (DAC) in einer Neufassung zu konsolidieren und zu vereinfachen. Ziel muss eine klarere, effizientere und kostensparende Umsetzung sein.

Bitkom welcomes the opportunity to give feedback on the Commissions proposal. We are convinced that the EU has a vibrant startup scene, especially in European hotspots. So there is no shortage of potential for new and innovative cutting-edge companies.

Bitkom welcomes the proposal and its intention to streamline cooperation between DPAs when enforcing the GDPR in cross-border cases, and to harmonize certain procedural aspects applied by Data Protection Authorities (DPAs). We also view this process as an opportunity for a broader conversation on how to improve harmonization.

Bitkom is thankful for the opportunity to contribute to the consultation and welcomes future occasions to offer its expertise in open discussions. We welcome the ECs initiative intended to streamline cooperation between DPAs when enforcing the GDPR in cross-border cases, and to harmonize certain procedural aspects applied by DPAs in cross-border cases.

In principle, Bitkom welcomes the fact that the draft AI Liability Directive aims to regulate the first fundamental questions of liability in the event of damage arising from the use of AI. However, we believe that additional liability rules in this form would not have been necessary. Rather, they could have a negative impact on the application and further development of AI technologies.

Filed in German · English published by the European Commission

Bitkom welcomes the proposal for the EU Chips Act and support the holistic view of the semiconductor value chain reaching beyond the production increase and showing commitment to strengthen chip design competencies and technology transfer in Europe. We call for maintaining general openness of the markets and closer collaboration with like-minded global partners.

Bitkom stresses that qualified electronic archiving must be clearly defined in line with eIDAS, with archiving and preservation treated as distinct but complementary services. Moreover, a future-proof framework should build on modern, widely accepted standards that support cross-border recognition and provide clarity for providers and users alike.

Estimated savings, complexity & duty cycle Industry would caution on the increase of the estimated energy saving potential. Projecting PC usage and energy consumption growth to 2030 is meaningless; projections involving digital technology further than five years ahead provides no degree of accuracy or certainty.

Estimated savings, complexity & duty cycle Industry would caution on the increase of the estimated energy saving potential. Projecting PC usage and energy consumption growth to 2030 is meaningless; projections involving digital technology further than five years ahead provides no degree of accuracy or certainty.

The success of the cross-border identification and authentication mechanism is a direct precondition for the value MyHealth@EU is intended to deliver to patients and clinicians. If patients cannot be reliably identified across borders, and if healthcare professionals cannot be securely authenticated in a way that works in clinical practice, the framework will not deliver its intended benefits.

Bitkom highlights the need for greater precision and practicality in the draft Implementing Act on qualified electronic ledgers. Clear and consistent terminology, differentiated definitions, and the correction of technical inaccuracies are essental to avoid ambiguity. At the same time, requirements for supervision must remain workable in practice, particularly in situation where urgent security updates are needed.

From Bitkoms perspective, this initiative amending Commission Implementing Regulations (EU) 2024/2979, 2982, 2977 and 2980 should primarily ensure that highly detailed technical specifications are not statically embedded in the Annexes of the CIRs.

From Bitkoms perspective, clearer provisions are needed on wallet and device binding, closer alignment with established European standards, and a flexible identity proofing approach besides the eID as the reference method for identification that supports fully automated onboarding and hybrid onboarding when strict security requirement are not met in well-defined and secure scenarios.

From Bitkoms perspective, this initiative amending Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/848 should ensure coherence of scope and legal clarity. Structural adjustments must be transparent and proportionate to avoid interpretative uncertainty. At the same time, the framework should remain technically flexible and avoid rigid legal embedding of rapidly evolving specifications.

Effective and efficient export controls are vital for the European economy, ensuring security and economic stability. At the same time, the experience of recent years, in particular following Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, has shown that European export controls need to be adapted. The White Paper highlights the current problems with European export controls and offers an opportunity to solve them.

Bitkom underlines the importance of keeping compliance and security requirements for qualified trust service providers proportionate and practical. Excessive or overly broad notification duties, redundant provisions, and unclear references risk creating legal uncertainty, administrative overload, and operational inefficiencies without adding supervisory value.

From Bitkoms perspective, the draft Implementing Act amending Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1569 requires further clarification to ensure legal certainty, interoperability and consistent implementation across Member States.