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On 21 March 2024, the Autoriteit Consument en Markt (the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets – ACM) issued a significant decision, granting an acquisition licence for Dutch telecom provider KPN to acquire rival telecom provider Youfone Nederland. This followed a decision by the ACM in September 2023 that the acquisition needed “further investigation”, as the acquisition “could result in a loss of significant competitive pressure” in the budget segment of the market for mobile telecommunication services, and “could lead to higher prices or a reduced...

On 19 December 2023, the newly appointed Secretary of State for Culture and Media issued a high-profile final decision, refusing a request by the Stichting Nederlandse Publieke Omroep (Dutch Public Broadcasting Foundation - NPO) to withdraw the recognition of the broadcaster Ongehoord Nederland (ON!) as a public broadcaster. This follows the previous Secretary of State for Culture and Media issuing a provisional decision in November 2023, also refusing the NPO’s request to withdraw the recognition of Ongehoord Nederland as a public broadcaster (see IRIS 2024-1/16). The notable procedure...

On 11 February 2024, the Minister for Economic Affairs issued an important Ministerial Decision, “provisionally” designating the Autoriteit Consument & Markt (Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets – ACM) as the national Digital Services Coordinator in the Netherlands under the EU landmark Digital Services Act (DSA) (see, for example, IRIS 2023-3/18 and IRIS 2023-5/2). Notably, the Dutch government published the Digital Services Act Implementation Bill in July 2023, which included provisions designating the ACM as the Digital Services Coordinator and designating...

On 8 January 2024, the Dutch Media Authority (Commissariaat voor de Media, CvdM) issued a significant decision, imposing a fine on ESPN , a sports broadcaster, for numerous violations of the rules governing gambling advertising. This action follows the new legislation on gambling advertising coming into force in 2023 (see IRIS 2023-7/20) and previously in 2021 (see IRIS 2022-2/15). The CvdM stated that it attached “great importance” to compliance with these regulations, as they are designed to “protect minors”. Seeing advertising for gambling can lead to a “positive...

On 18 January 2024, the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (Autoriteit Consument & Markt) (ACM) published important draft Guidelines on the EU’s landmark Digital Services Act (DSA) (see, for example, IRIS 2023-3/18 and IRIS 2023-5/2). Notably, this follows the ACM being designated as the national Digital Services Coordinator in the Netherlands under the DSA under recent Dutch legislation (IRIS 2023-8/16). The draft Guidelines have been developed by the ACM to ensure that “market participants falling under the DSA are adequately prepared” for...