On 11 February 2025, the European Commission (the “Commission”) published its 2025 work programme, announcing plans to withdraw a number of legislative proposals. Of particular note is the proposed withdrawal of the ePrivacy Regulation and the AI Liability Directive which may receive mixed reactions across the industry.

AI Liability Directive (“AILD”)

The goal of the AILD is to harmonise non-contractual civil liability rules for damage caused by AI systems, in order to make it easier for end-users of AI systems who have suffered damage to bring claims. The potential withdrawal of this directive perhaps reflects the Commission’s awareness of the ever-expanding regulatory burden faced by companies, including the updated Product Liability Directive (which will apply to software products, including AI) from late 2026. The Commission will now assess whether another proposal should be made, or an alternative approach taken, with a key consideration being whether introducing another set of rules could risk stifling emerging technology and innovation across the EU.

ePrivacy Regulation (the “Regulation”)

First proposed by the Commission in January 2017, the Regulation sought to replace the long-standing and restrictive ePrivacy Directive (2002/58/EC) and was originally intended to be passed at the same time as the GDPR. However, it has been subject to a number of delays and was still in trilogue discussions until late summer, 2024. The Regulation sought inter alia to reform the consent rule for the use of cookies and other identifiers, including giving end users the ability to whitelist certain websites or to specify for which websites third party cookies are allowed. The Regulation would have also explicitly permitted the processing of electronic communications data for the purpose of maintaining or restoring security or detecting technical faults and errors.

In considering its potential withdrawal, the Commission opined that the ePrivacy Regulation is now outdated. While some businesses will welcome the withdrawal, others will consider it a missed opportunity to liberalise the rules governing the access and storage of information on terminal equipment.

Next Steps

The European Parliament and the Council will have an opportunity to communicate their views on these proposed withdrawals before the Commission decides on whether to proceed.

The Authors would like to thank Emily Birchall for her contribution to the article.