European ecommerce moves up a gear

No-one expected a lesson in Internet-age government to come from the European Parliament. But late last week, that modern-day Tower of Babel voted in the Ecommerce Directive in double-quick time. It was less than a year after it first appeared before MEPs.

Compare and contrast: the UK's Ecommerce Bill is now nearing completion, but it's spent longer before Parliament in London than it took 15 member states to agree in Brussels.

It is essential for the success of ebusiness that a certain amount of harmonisation takes place across the common market. And the EU has much to gain from a united approach - early movement on data protection gave us a strong bargaining position with the US.

This means that while US consumers have to scrutinise the privacy statements of every site to which they give their details, EU consumers are assured a consistent level of privacy. The EU position forced the US to move much closer to our way of thinking.

The EU Ecommerce Directive establishes broad principles by which all member states must live, but more complex issues are waiting in the wings: copyright, law enforcement agencies' plans to scan Internet communications on a Europe-wide basis, and the liability of ISPs for content held on their servers.

Now member states owe it to the businesses and consumers they serve to adopt the first set of principles rapidly.

After all, no-one wants to be put in the shade by Brussels.