When Ofcom Asks for Your Data, Saying No Just Got Harder
On 30 October 2026 the Divisional Court dismissed judicial review challenges brought against Ofcom by Meta Platforms and WhatsApp, X and TikTok over information notices issued under the Online Safety Act 2023. The judgment, R (Meta, X and TikTok) v Ofcom [2026] EWHC 2779, is the first time a court has examined Ofcom’s power to compel information from regulated online services.
The CMA Turns to Enterprise Software: Microsoft’s Proposed Strategic Market Status
Until now, the UK’s digital markets regime has been aimed at consumer-facing technology: search engines, app stores, mobile operating systems. On 16 October 2026, the Competition and Markets Authority took it somewhere new, publishing a proposed decision to designate Microsoft as having strategic market status in respect of its business software ecosystem. It is the first time the regime has been turned on the software companies buy for themselves rather than the platforms their customers use.
Your Software Is About to Become a “Product”: UK Reform Proposals and the EU’s December Deadline
On 8 October 2026 the Law Commission opened a consultation proposing that software and AI systems be treated as products in their own right under the UK’s strict product liability regime. Seven weeks later, on 9 December 2026, the European Union’s new Product Liability Directive begins to apply and does exactly that across the single market.
The EU’s KIDS Act: a new approach to protecting children online
On 17 September 2026 the European Commission published its proposal for the EU Keeping Internet Digital Spaces Accountable and Trustworthy Act – the KIDS Act.
UK Subscription Contract Rules Now Start in January 2027
The government has moved the start date for the UK’s new consumer subscription rules. The regime in Part 4, Chapter 2 of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024 will now take effect in January 2027 rather than the spring 2027 date announced earlier this year. The reasoning is seasonal: January is when consumers sign up to most new subscriptions.
Endeavours obligations in a contract: how hard do you actually have to try?
Endeavours clauses are the polite fiction of commercial contracting: a promise to try, sitting where neither party will promise to deliver.
DSA Risk Assessment Failures: Lessons from the €550M AliExpress Decision
On 20 July 2026, the European Commission fined AliExpress €550 million for failing to diligently assess and mitigate the systemic risk that illegal, unsafe and counterfeit products spread through its marketplace. It is the largest penalty issued under the Digital Services Act to date.
Ofcom Adds Two New Priority Offences Under the Online Safety Act: What Providers Need to Do Now
Ofcom has published a statement introducing new priority offences under the Online Safety Act (OSA), setting out fresh guidance for tech companies on reviewing their Illegal Content Risk Assessments (ICRAs) and updating their compliance frameworks. Regulated providers should treat this as a call to action: existing risk assessments, content moderation policies, and compliance positions all need to be revisited in light of these changes.
When Can Another EU Member State Regulate Your Online Service? The CJEU Redraws the Map
If your company provides online services from one EU Member State and another Member State is trying to enforce its media, youth-protection or platform laws against you, a recent judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union deserves your attention. In many cases, the answer to “does this foreign national law even apply to us?” is now: probably not — unless the law is built in a very specific way.