Debate Continues as EU’s Data Act Final Draft Includes Smart Contract Kill Switch

The ultimate model of the European Union Information Act has been revealed, elevating issues throughout the blockchain business. The brand new guidelines, as seen by CoinDesk, don’t handle the business’s pleas and will doubtlessly render most good contracts unlawful. The provisions aimed toward making certain the safe termination of automated data-sharing agreements nonetheless refer broadly to “good contracts” and don’t restrict the scope to privately owned and permission knowledge information as hoped by lobbyists.

Negotiators reached an settlement on the controversial textual content on June 28, following issues expressed by blockchain organizations in an open letter. Nevertheless, the textual content has solely been made public now. The disclosed model of the legislation nonetheless refers to “good contracts” as an alternative of the business’s most well-liked time period, “digital contracts.”

Moreover, it locations obligations on “distributors” of the automated packages, elevating fears amongst lobbyists concerning the potential imposition of perpetual and limitless liabilities in decentralized situations the place there is no such thing as a single vendor.

Though the textual content has been modified to use solely to the “automated execution” of data-sharing agreements for good units like linked vehicles and fridges, it fails to specify non-public or permissioned networks, extending its scope past what the lobbyists had requested.

The circulated textual content, shared privately with member governments by Spain, the present chair of the talks, displays the legislation’s updates primarily based on the provisional political settlement reached throughout a June 27 assembly. The textual content states that each one political points had been resolved, closing the negotiations with lawmakers on the European Parliament. 

For the textual content to change into legislation, it should obtain formal approval from the parliament and the Council of the EU, which consists of the governments of the member states.