College read-out / Press conference by European Commission Executive Vice-President Henna VIRKKUNEN and Commissioner Michael McGRATH on the Digital Fairness Act and a Consumer enforcement initiative
11 November 2026
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European Commission
Follow its sittings00:00 - 00:47
Speaker 3
Thank you very much EVP and good morning everybody. Thank you also much for being here with us as we share the details of this important consumer package. The Digital Fairness Act together with the update to the Consumer Protection Cooperation Regulation represents the most significant reform of EU consumer protection rules in more than 20 years. The digital economy has transformed how we shop, consume entertainment and how we access information. Our existing consumer laws were developed before the rise of e-commerce, before the attention economy and before the sophisticated use of personal data became central to how businesses reach and persuade consumers.
00:47 - 01:33
Speaker 1
So, today's update builds on strong foundations of EU consumer law and our digital rulebook. And our ambition is clear: more choice and control for consumers, simpler rules and fairer competition for businesses, and stronger enforcement to tackle infringements that cross borders. When shopping online consumers are being faced today with practices designed to mislead, manipulate and even to exploit them. They book a hotel or a concert ticket only to discover that the headline price does not tell the whole story, with hidden fees added along the way. They sign up for a subscription, but find it deliberately difficult to cancel.
01:33 - 01:59
Speaker 2
They follow influencers without always realizing what looks like a friendly recommendation is actually paid advertising. And these techniques come at a real financial cost. Consumers are losing 10.3 billion euro every year. This is happening at a time when we know that households are already feeling the pressure of the cost-of-living. Every euro matters.
01:59 - 02:35
Speaker 1
Consumers deserve to know what they are paying for and to be in control of their choices. The Digital Fairness Act will make sure the digital economy works for consumers and not against them. It will prohibit manipulative design practices such as dark patterns that push consumers into making decisions against their own interests. Fake claims that a product is almost sold out will no longer have a place online. It will give consumers the choice to turn off addictive features such as endless scrolling and autoplay of videos.
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