Austria

[AT] Data Protection Act 2000, Distance Marketing Act and Electronic Signatures Act Passed

IRIS 1999-8:1/16

Albrecht Haller

IFPI Austria

The three Acts are the result of government bills brought before Parliament in February and June (see IRIS 1999-7: 14). By speeding up its proceedings, Parliament was able to pass the new legislation before the summer recess and before the National Assembly elections due to be held on 3 October 1999.

All three Acts are based on European Community law: the Datenschutzgesetz (the Data Protection Act) transposes the Data Protection Directive (95/46/EC); the Fernabsatz-Gesetz (the Distance Marketing Act) is designed to transpose the Distance Marketing Directive (97/7/EC), Directive 97/55/EC on incorporating comparative advertising in the Directive on misleading advertising, Directive 98/27/EC on injunctions and Directive 99/34/EC amending the Product Liability Directive; the Signaturgesetz (the Electronic Signatures Act) will transpose the expected EC Electronic Signatures Directive.

The Data Protection Act 2000 and Electronic Signatures Act come into force on 1 January 2000; the provisions of the Distance Marketing Act will enter into force at different times, in accordance with the EC Directive on which it is based.


References

  • Bundesgesetz über den Schutz personenbezogener Daten (Datenschutzgesetz 2000 – DSG 2000), Bundesgesetzblatt 1999 I 165 vom 17. August 1999.
  • Federal Act on the protection of personal data, Federal Gazette 1999 I 165, 17 August 1999.

  • Bundesgesetz, mit dem Bestimmungen über den Vertragsabschluß im Fernabsatz in das Konsumentenschutzgesetz eingefügt und das Bundesgesetz gegen den unlauteren Wettbewerb 1984 sowie das Produkthaftungsgesetz geändert werden (Fernabsatz-Gesetz), Bundesgesetzblatt 1999 I 185 vom 19. August 1999.
  • Federal Act incorporating provisions on distance contracts into the Consumer Protection Act and amending the 1984 Federal Act on Unfair Competition and the Product Liability Act, Federal Gazette 1999 I 185, 19 August 1999.

  • Bundesgesetz über elektronische Signaturen (Signaturgesetz – SigG), Bundesgesetzblatt 1999 I 190 vom 19. August 1999.
  • Federal Act on electronic signatures, Federal Gazette 1999 I 190, 19 August 1999.

This article has been published in IRIS Legal Observations of the European Audiovisual Observatory.