Course description
This course aims to provide students with a comprehensive understanding of how various branches of law in the European Union regulate and respond to technological advancements. It explores the dynamic interplay between law and technology, focusing on how legal instruments are used to ensure fair competition, protect fundamental rights, and promote responsible innovation. Contrary to the common belief that technology evolves in a legal vacuum, the development and deployment of technological innovations are indeed increasingly shaped and constrained by legal frameworks.

The course begins with an introduction to the European Digital Internal Market and a comparative overview of digital regulation in the EU and the United States, highlighting differing legal approaches and policy priorities. It then presents the foundational principles of European competition law, with a special focus on the distinctions between traditional and digital markets and on the relationship between competition law and intellectual property rights. For decades, EU competition law has played a pivotal role in curbing anti-competitive practices among pharmaceutical and technology companies. Several cases where competition law has intersected with technological innovation are assessed in cases involving major players such as Novartis, Intel, Google and Facebook.

Traditional competition law has, however, shown limitations in addressing the unique challenges posed by digital markets and the growing influence of Big Tech companies. The course thus addresses the response of the European Commission, which introduced the Digital Markets Act (DMA) in 2022 to prevent unfair practices by dominant platforms such as Google, Amazon, Facebook, Apple, and Microsoft (collectively known as GAFAM).

The course then turns to the Digital Services Act (DSA), which complements the DMA by establishing a comprehensive framework for the responsibilities of online platforms. The DSA aims to create a safer, more transparent digital environment by setting out rules on content moderation, algorithmic accountability, and user rights. It has been described as a constitutional framework for the digital age, reflecting the EU’s commitment to platform governance that respects democratic values and fundamental rights.

Yet, regulating digital markets to preserve competition and maintain a safe digital environment is only one facet of the broader legal response to technological change. The exponential growth of data – both personal and non-personal – has raised complex legal questions, which are addressed in the next part of the course. The EU has developed a comprehensive data strategy to tackle these challenges, resulting in key legislative instruments such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the Data Act, and the Data Governance Act. These laws aim to foster trust, ensure data sovereignty, and facilitate responsible data sharing across sectors through the creation of a single market for data.

The final segment of the course addresses the regulation of artificial intelligence, a rapidly evolving field with profound societal implications. The newly adopted Artificial Intelligence Act introduces a risk-based approach to AI regulation, balancing innovation with ethical and safety concerns. It reflects the EU’s ambition to lead globally in the development of trustworthy AI systems that respect fundamental rights and democratic values.

The course concludes with a critical reflection on the theoretical foundations of regulation and the institutional choices that shape legal responses to technological change. Through this multidisciplinary lens, students will gain the analytical tools needed to understand and evaluate the evolving legal landscape surrounding technology in the European Union.

As part of the course, students will work in groups to prepare a presentation on how technology is regulated outside the European Union. These presentations, that will take place during the last week of the course, will explore legal frameworks in other jurisdictions – such as the United States, China, Japan or Russia – and compare them with the EU’s approach. This component both deepens the students’ understanding of the international dimensions of technology governance while encouraging collaborative learning and critical reflection on global regulatory diversity.

Learning outcomes
By the end of the course, students from diverse academic backgrounds will be able to understand the complex interplay between law and technology across multiple levels. Drawing on insights from law, economics, and sociology, the course equips students to critically assess the political and legal implications of different regulatory approaches aimed at governing markets and maintaining competition. The knowledge acquired will be applicable in a variety of contexts, including academic research, legal and policy practice, public administration, and cultural analysis. Students will develop an awareness of the diverse legal strategies available to regulate technology and will be able to evaluate their effectiveness in addressing contemporary challenges.

Teaching and assessment methods

_Teaching
The course combines preparatory readings – including academic articles, book chapters, and official decisions – with in-class discussions. Readings will be distributed in advance, are mandatory, and form the foundation for classroom engagement and analysis.

_Assessment
A. 2-hour written final essay: 50% of the final course mark
B. Class participation: 15% of the final course mark.
C. Group presentation: 35% of the final course mark.

Syllabus

Week 1
Introduction: The European Digital Internal Market
Competition Law
  - Foundational principles of European competition Law
Reading: Whish/Bailey, Competition Law, TBD

Week 2
Competition Law
  - Foundational principles of European competition Law
  - From traditional markets to markets in the Digital Age
Readings: TBD; Heinemann, From Two-sided Networks to Digital Ecosystems: The Economics of Platform Markets

Week 3
Competition Law
  - The Relationship between Competition Law and Intellectual Property Rights
  - Discussion based on decisions of the EU Commission and judgments of Court of Justice of the European Union
Readings: TBD (press releases of decisions and judgments)

Week 4
Competition Law
  - Discussion based on decisions of the EU Commission and judgments of Court of Justice of the European Union
Readings: TBD (press releases of decisions and judgments)

Week 5
Competition Law
  - Discussion based on decisions of the EU Commission and judgments of Court of Justice of the European Union
  - Limitations: digital platforms
Readings: TBD (press releases of decisions and judgments); Whish/Bailey, Competition Law, pp. 1117-1126

Week 6
Introduction to the European Regulations for the digital age
Regulating digital platforms (DMA)
Readings: Podszun, From Competition Law to Platform Regulation – Regulatory Choices for the Digital Markets Act; Caffarra/Scott Morton, The Digital Markets Act: A Translation.

Week 7
Regulating digital platforms (DMA)
Regulating digital markets (DSA)
Readings: Tourkochoriti, The Digital Services Act and the EU as the Global Regulator of the Internet.

Week 8
Regulating digital markets (DSA)
Reading: TBD

Week 9
Regulating Data
  - GDPR
  - European Data Strategy
  - Data Act
  - Data Governance Act
Readings: Carovano/Finck, Regulating data intermediaries: The impact of the Data Governance Act on the EU’s data economy; Kerber, Wolfgang, Governance of IoT Data: Why the EU Data Act Will not Fulfil its Objectives.

Week 10
Regulating AI
  - European AI Strategy
  - AI Act
Reading: Hacker/Engel/Hammer/Mittelstadt, Introduction to the Foundations and Regulation of Generative AI

Week 11
Regulating new technologies: a critical reflection
Reading: Komesar, 1, 2

Week 12
Student presentations: Regulating Technology Outside the EU

Bibliography

Required readings
• Carovano, Gabriele/Finck, Michèle, “Regulating data intermediaries: The impact of the Data Governance Act on the EU’s data economy”, 50 (2023) Computer Law and Security Review, 4.
• Hacker, Philipp/Engel, Andreas/Hammer, Sarah/Mittelstadt, Brent, “Introduction to the Foundations and Regulation of Generative AI”, in: Hacker, Philipp/Engel, Andreas/Hammer, Sarah/Mittelstadt, Brent (eds), The Oxford Handbook of the Foundation and Regulation of Generative AI, Oxford (to be published).
• Heinemann, Andreas, “From Two-sided Networks to Digital Ecosystems: The Economics of Platform Markets”, in: Jung, Peter (ed.), Competition Law Issues in the Platform Economy: Comparative Commercial and Economic Law Proceedings from the 38th German Conference on Comparative Law in Tübingen, Tübingen 2024, pp. 1-28.
• Kerber, Wolfgang, “Governance of IoT Data: Why the EU Data Act Will not Fulfil its Objectives”, 72 (2023)2 GRUR International, 120.
• Komesar, Neil K., Choosing Institutions in Law, Economics and Public Policy, Chicago/London 1994.
• Podszun, Rupprecht, “From Competition Law to Platform Regulation – Regulatory Choices for the Digital Markets Act”, (2023) 17(1) Economics, 1.
• Tourkochoriti, Ioanna, “The Digital Services Act and the EU as the Global Regulator of the Internet”, 24 (2023)1 Chicago Journal of International Law, 129.
• Whish, Richard/Bailey David, Competition Law, 11th ed., Oxford 2024.

Additional readings
• Acemoglu, Daron/Johnson, Simon, Power and Progress: Our Thousand-Year Struggle Over Technology and Prosperity, London 2024.
• Akman, Pınar, “Regulating Competition in Digital Platform Markets: A Critical Assessment of the Framework and Approach of the EU”, 47 (2022)2 European Law Review, 85
• Andriychuk, Oleg, “Shaping the new modality of the digital markets: The impact of the DSA/DMA proposals on inter-platform competition”, (2021) 44(3) World Competition, 261.
• Benhamou, Yaniv, “Big Data and the Law: a holistic analysis based on a three-step approach – Mapping property like rights, their exceptions and licensing practices”, 2020 Revue Suisse de Droit des Affaires, 405.
• Belleflamme, Paul/Peitz, Martin, The Economics of Platforms – Concepts and Strategy, Cambridge 2021.
• Bower, Joseph L./Christensen, Clayton M., “Disruptive Technologies: Catching the Wave”, 73 (1995)1 Harvard Business Review, 43 (1995).
• Budzinski, Olivier/Mendelsohn Juliane, “Regulating Big Tech: From Competition Policy to Sector Regulation?”, 72-73 (2023) ORDO, 215.
• Caffarra, Cristina/Scott Morton, Fiona, “The Digital Markets Act: A Translation”, 2021 World Commerce Review, Spring 2021.
• European Commission: Directorate-General for Competition, de Montjoye, Yves-Alexandre/Schweitzer, Heike/ Crémer, Jacques, Competition policy for the digital era, Brussels 2019.
• De Werra, Jacques, “Patents and Trade Secrets in the Internet Age”, (2015) 134(II) Revue de Droit Suisse, 123.
• Drexel, Josef/Hilty, Reto M./Desaunettes-Barbero, Luc/Globocnik, Jure/Gonzalez Otero, Begoña/Hoffmann, Jörg/Kim, Daria/Kulhari, Shraddha/Richter, Heiko/Scheuber, Stefan/Slowinski, Peter R./Wiedermann, Klaus, “Artificial Intelligence and Intellectual Property Law, Position Statement of the Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition of 9 April 2021 on the Current Debate”, Max Planck Institute for Innovation and Competition Research Paper No. 21 10, Munich 2021, 12.
• Ezrachi, Ariel/Stucke, Maurice E., Virtual Competition: The Promise and Perils of the Algorithm-Driven Economy, Harvard 2019.
• Floridi, Luciano, “The European Legislation on AI: A Brief Analysis of its Philosophical Approach”, (2021) 34 Philosophy and Technology, 215.
• Ginsburg, Jane C./Budiardjo, Luke, “Authors and Machines”, (2019) 34 Berkeley Technology Law Journal, 396.
• Hacker, Philipp/Cordes, Johann/Rochon Janina, “Regulating ‘Gatekeeper’ Artificial Intelligence and Data: Transparency, Access, and Fairness under the Digital Markets Act, the General Data Protection Regulation, and Beyond”, 15 (2024) European Journal of Risk Regulation 49.
• Hovenkamp, Herbert, “Antitrust and Regulation over Time”, The Regulatory Review, 1st October 2020.
• Ibañez Colomo, Pablo, “The Draft Digital Markets Act: A legal and institutional analysis”, 12 (2023)7 JECLAP, 561.
• Jenny, Frederic, “Competition Law and Digital Ecosystems: Learning to Walk Before We Run”, 30 (2021), Industrial and Corporate Change, 1143.
• Greenhalgh, Christine/Rogers, Mark, Innovation, Intellectual Property, and Economic Growth, Princeton 2010.
• Landes, William M./Posner Richard A., The Economic Structure of Intellectual Property Law, Cambridge 2003.
• Neven, Damien J., “The As-Efficient Competitor Test and Principle. What Role in the Proposed Guidelines?”, 14 (2023)8 JECLAP, 565.
• OECD, Handbook on Competition Policy in the Digital Age, Paris 2022.
• Petit, Nicolas, Big Tech and the Digital Economy: The Moligopoly Scenario, Oxford 2020.
• Raposo, Vera Lúcia, “Ex machina: preliminary critical assessment of the European Draft Act on artificial intelligence”, (2022) 30(1) International Journal of Law and Information Technology, 88.
• Rochet, Jean-Charles/Tirole Jean, “Platform Competition in Two-Sided Markets”, 1 (2003)4 Journal of the European Economic Association, 990.
• Schweitzer, Heike, “The art to make gatekeeper positions contestable and the challenge to know”, 2021 Zeitschrift für Europäisches Privatrecht, 503.
• Strowel, Alain, “Big Data and Data Appropriation in the EU”, in Aplin (ed.), Research Handbook on Intellectual Property and Digital Technologies, Cheltenham/Northampton 2018, 12.
• Stucke, Maurice E./Grunes, Allen P., Big Data and Competition Policy, Oxford 2016.
• Thiel, Peter, “Competition Is for Losers”, Wall Street Journal, 12th December 2014.
• Tyagi, Kalpana/Kamperman, Anselm/Cauffman, Caroline, Digital Platforms, Competition Law and Regulation: Comparative Perspectives, London 2024.
• Wachter, Sandra/Mittelstadt, Brent/Russell, Chris, “Do Large Language Models Have a Legal Duty to Tell the Truth?”, 11 (2024)8 Royal Society Open Science.
• Witt, Anne C., “Platform Regulation in Europe – Per Se Rules to the Rescue?”, 18 (2022)3 Journal of Competition Law & Economics, 670.

Last updated: July 23, 2025