Trending topic: #SharingEconomy
17/03/16
For some months (or even years) now regulators have shown interest in the new sharing economy business models. Local, regional and sectoral administrations seem especially interested in this sector, since its impact on citizen-tourist coexistence, sectoral regulations and Labour Law is more than evident. Benefits stemming from the sharing economy are arguably abundant. The press, for example, frequently gives it credit for contributing to alleviate the economic crisis in our country. (Negative) externalities are also sharp though, considering the dimensions this new phenomenon has acquired. Technological platforms offering intermediary services base their success on network effects at a transnational level. It is clear that they have achieved their goals in record time.
The questions are thus obvious: is there a need for regulation? In the affirmative, who must regulate? And to what extent? Let’s see a sample of the most recent novelties in this sphere.
Spanish Competition authorities seem particularly interested. For example, the national authority CNMC has recently challenged some municipal ordinances that, to the Spanish watchdog’s mind, clearly cross the line of admissible incumbent protection. The CNMC also published last week its Preliminary Conclusions on the Study of new service provision business models and the sharing economy. The CNMC sees this phenomenon as holistic and heterogeneous, yet entailing a particular impact on transport and lodging sectors. The authority calls for a regulation based on the efficient economic regulation principles, and it recommends self-restraint to administrations. The first question should be: is regulation necessary? Only if it were should administrations embark on regulation, while trying to avoid any consolidation or increase of barriers to entry that discourage access to the market.
The Catalan regional authority ACCo is also active in this arena. Among others, it has issued an opinion on the Draft Catalan Decree which shall regulate touristic dwellings (HUTs, by its Catalan acronym); and on the moratorium adopted in Barcelona in July 2015, and extended for another year a few days ago.
On the opposite bank of the river, we find local administrations and their planning and zoning powers. Those are basically local competencies. Barcelona, for instance, seems very much aware of this fact and does not backtrack in light of Competition authorities’ recommendations on how to organize the city. The Special Plan on touristic lodging (PEUAT, by its Catalan acronym) was also issued last week and is currently under public consultation. The City Hall proposes a differentiation among local districts, which includes measures in overcrowded areas (especially Ciutat Vella and Eixample), that ensure a “natural decrease” of the offer. The “barrier to entry” is therefore obvious, but, is it justified? Up to now, the answer varies greatly depending on who one speaks to.
The European Commission is also interested in this topic and has included a European Agenda on the Sharing Economy among its priorities. DG GROWTH (i) launched a public consultation in September 2015, whose preliminary results were published in January 2016; and (ii) requested 3 external studies (one of them being from Rating Legis 🙂 ) that may serve as a basis for a report to be published next spring Joanna Drake, in charge of DG GROWTH’s team handling this issue, recently said in Barcelona, at a meeting organised by the Catalan Council for the European Movement, that the Commission’s goal is not to come up with new legislation in this sphere but to provide its own interpretation on how to apply existing rules to these new activities. It appears that soft law is the Commission’s preferred choice when it comes to regulating the Sharing Economy. Time will tell if it is the most effective.
