Media Partnership - Digital Networks Act: Rewriting the DNA of Europe’s Open Internet? part 1

The European Commission’s upcoming Digital Networks Act (DNA) is set to reshape the future of connectivity in Europe. By overhauling the rules that govern telecom operators, cloud services, and content providers, the DNA raises fundamental questions about fairness, competition, innovation, and the very architecture of our open internet.Join this hybrid event to examine the risks and opportunities, and jointly debate what kind of DNA will truly serve Europeans in the years ahead.Panel 1 – An Uneven Playing Field for Connectivity: Myth or Reality?Central question: Should rules originally designed to regulate telecom operators be extended to the wider tech sector?In its white paper on how to master Europe’s digital infrastructure needs and recent DNA call for evidence, the European Commission asserts there is increasing convergence between telecoms and the tech sector (particularly cloud and content providers). Telecom providers, for their part, build on this assumption to advance claims that the regulatory framework therefore should converge as well.This panel will unpack the structural and functional differences between the two sectors, while also examining the collaborative dynamics that underpin their relationships. We will walk through the patchwork of existing EU frameworks to answer one question: is extending the EECC to digital actors necessary, fair, or even workable?Panel 2 – How Does the DNA Risk Threatening the Open Internet?Central question: What concrete risks does the Digital Networks Act pose to the open internet?This panel will examine the reality of collaboration between telecoms and tech, and assess dangerous proposals that keep resurfacing – in the DNA call for evidence and earlier public consultations, for example.A central theme will be how any form of dispute resolution for IP interconnection would evolve into network fees – and how such measures would fundamentally reshape the way the internet functions today. Experts with first-hand experience will share their insights, underscoring the real-world stakes for competition, innovation, and end users.