THE DIGITAL SERVICES MARKET AT THE CORE OF EU REGULATORY POLICY

The purpose of the study is to analyze changes in EU regulatory policy with an emphasis on the regulation of digital markets, in particular digital services markets, which contribute to ensuring the strategic autonomy of the integration association without loss for the competitiveness of European manufacturers. The relevance of digital trade regulation is determined by a number of legislative acts. Most digital companies in the EU market are gatekeepers, controlling a significant share of US imports of computer and information services into the EU. Trade restrictions, which are regulated by the above-mentioned institutional acts, are aimed at promoting the development of European companies in the field of IT, but there is a risk that related sectors that are undergoing digital transformation may suffer from such protectionist instruments due to the increase in the price of provided data and digital services. An important aspect of modern international competition is digital ecosystems and platforms. Strict regulation of ecosystems and platforms will quickly become obsolete, may lead to a slowdown in the development of digital markets and a deterioration in the quality of services for users. The European Commission faces the challenge of creating favourable conditions for the development of European digital ecosystems and platforms, taking into account the development of a regulatory environment that would take into account the level of maturity of digital markets, and also offer counteractions to such risks as abuse of a dominant position, "lock-in" of technologies, and monopolization of data. The difficulty lies in the lack of a unified approach to defining the economic component of digital markets and digital platforms. Existing definitions in the regulations of individual EU member states do not always take into account the specifics of the economic criteria of digital platforms, for example, the presence of strong network effects or cross-subsidization of services. Otherwise, the definition may affect business entities that are not digital platforms as such, but are considered intermediaries between several persons using electronic means of interaction. The new regulation of digital services markets and digital platforms is, among other things, also aimed at consumers. Thus, the Digital Services Act (DSA) contains provisions on consumer protection. The update of the current legislation is aimed at clarifying the liability regime for digital intermediaries operating in the European Union, as well as strengthening control and supervision over compliance with consumer law requirements. The new provisions impose obligations on digital platforms to combat illegal content.