A group representing independent automotive service and repair operators and fleets wrote to the European Commission, urging it to honour a stalled commitment to pass legislation on access to in-vehicle data.
The Independent Service Providers (ISP) group asked European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and the College of Commissioners to end what it says are repeated delays in proposing legislation on access to in-vehicle data, functions, and resources. According to the group, doing so would create real competition in Europe’s data-driven automotive and mobility markets.
“The Commission committed to bringing forward access to in-vehicle data legislation in December 2020 by the end of 2021. We’re now in 2023 and the proposal has been delayed yet again,” the group said. “Despite six years of painstaking Commission evidence-gathering and previous strategic policy plans, the vast majority of the sector are left in limbo and investment decisions are delayed in the face of substantial market barriers that benefit just one segment of a potentially huge market.
“We urge the Commission President to get this process back on track. This legislation is vital to unblock the automotive and mobility services sector market. Almost every European uses some form of mobility every day and they should be able to enjoy the benefits of data-driven innovation, choice, and affordability in the automotive and mobility ecosystem. Today they can’t. The Commission must rectify this.”
According to the group, the European automotive and mobility ecosystem continues to face market barriers from OEMs despite the Commission resolving similar issues relating to wider internet services. This included addressing the increasing dependency on the technology platforms of ‘hyperscalers’ (large companies that account for most cloud services). This means that the European internet economy is no longer captive to a few dominant players.
The ISP said urgent action is required to allow time for co-legislators to scrutinise and adopt the text before the end of the parliamentary term in May 2024.