Consumers want Internet, phone and TV in one package

A new Eurobarometer survey "E-Communications Household Survey", shows that four out of ten European households are buying "bundled" Internet, phone and TV services from a single provider and that one in four respondents considered that their Internet download/upload speeds do not match the conditions of the contract they signed. However, six out of ten households say they have never considered switching to another service provider as they have to face too many obstacles such as the risk of a temporary loss of service, the risk of having to pay for more than one provider during the switching process and the lack of clarity about the steps required for switching.

The survey measures the attitude of European households and individuals towards fixed and mobile telephony, Internet access, TV broadcast services, bundled offers, privacy, quality of services, affordability and switching.

Download the survey

New survey on data protection and electronic identity

The main conclusions of a new Eurobarometer survey on attitudes towards data protection and electronic identity show that three out of four Europeans accept that revealing personal data is part of everyday life, but they are also worried about how companies – including search engines and social networks – use their information.

The report reveals that 62% of people in the European Union give the minimum required information so as to protect their identity, while 75% want to be able to delete personal information online whenever they want to – the so-called right to be forgotten.However people disclose personal data, including biographical information (almost 90%), social information (almost 50%) and sensitive information (almost 10%) on the sites.

The survey results come as the Commission prepares to reform EU data protection rules (see IP/10/1462) and SPEECH/11/183).

More information

The OECD publishes 2 reports on Privacy and Digital Identity Management

Two reports published by the OECD's Committee for Information, Computer and Communications Policy, analyse respectively the privacy landscape and the national strategies and policies for digital identity management in the OECD countries.

“The Evolving Privacy Landscape: 30 Years After the OECD Privacy Guidelines”

The report begins by recalling the development and influence of the Guidelines. It then describes a number of current trends in the processing of personal data and the privacy risks in this evolving environment. It identifies some of the challenges that today’s environment brings for protecting privacy under existing approaches, and highlights a number of current initiatives and innovative approaches to privacy.

Particular attention is focused on the impact of the Internet and other technologies, consistent with the issues and priorities highlighted in the 2008 Seoul Ministerial on the Future of the Internet Economy.

Download the full report

“National Strategies and Policies for Digital Identity Management in OECD Countries”

The report is based on responses to the Questionnaire on National Strategies and Policies for Digital Identity Management (IdM) in OECD Countries. The report includes a detailed analysis, a list of references, country summaries (Annex I) and a contribution by the Internet Technical Advisory Committee (ITAC) (Annex II).

Download the full report

Europe and the United States trying to reach agreement on the protection of privacy on the Internet

For years the United States and Europe have diverged in their approach to policing the web. However, the two sides are converging in their web privacy positions, partly through intensive meetings in recent months between regulators from Washington and Brussels.A series of meetings between U.S. and European regulators have helped to bridge the different views on how to regulate the protection of privacy on the Internet, but significant differences still remain, such as the insistence of Europe for the recognition of the "right to be forgotten".

More Information