"European Consumer Summit" on April 1 and 2, 2009

While there are problems to convince people from different Member States to get to know each other, learn other languages and cultures, the focus of the Commission seems to be still much more on markets. As people are reluctant to shop across borders, the Internet has become the favourite spot where Brussels discovers the New Europe for consumers. Three Directives facilitating Distance Marketing and E-Commerce have been designed to abolish national obstacles and diverging rules and cultures. But consumers do not seem to be convinced since such commerce is nearly non-existant. Consumers do not only mistrust foreign offers but the Internet as such which is more known for information, publicity and such services one would not like to buy in person as well as private commerce like e-bay. As far as financial services, telephone companies and mail order companies are concerned the Internet has still a lot of disadvantages compared with arms length commerce. Consumer advisers warn that Internet offers lack personal advice, are difficult to evaluate, may stem from unreachable providers and destroy local commerce who is just misused for cheap advice.

There is certainly no country in the world which could claim that more Internet shopping would be part of their consumer protection activities but DG SANCO of the European Commission. This impression is underlined by a Summit entitled "European Consumer Summit" where on a pre-meeting indeed some consultative bodies of the EU come together and others which receive substantial sponsoring from the Commission will attend.

Reading the issues, the list of speakers and the high importance this event has been attributed by Commissioner Kuneva it comes up to our minds that this looks more like a publicly sponsored marketing event of the Internet industries than like an effort to develop more consumer protection on the Internet. Phishing, pornography, trojan horses, unsolicited advertising, spam e-mail, lost funds and traps where people are caught in a debt collection agency are not the issues which are at the forefront of this event. Should we truly have credit card credit on mouse click as the two Directives on Payment Services and Consumer Credit force Member States to admit? Has the subprime crisis told us that we need less proof and less advice in financial services and that the Internet is the best way to guarantee a healthy financial system?

Mr J Bell, Head of Cabinet of Commissioner Kuneva (also moderates the plenary session)
Video message from President Barroso; Commissioner Kuneva Keynote speech – A Digital Strategy for Consumers; Mr Esko Aho, former Prime minister of Finland and Board Member of Nokia. Vision of the future consumer world and how business needs to adapt to the online world; Ms Colette Bowe, Chairman, Ofcom – Digital Europe : What does it mean for consumers?; Mr Nikesh Arora, Senior Vice-president, Google - Google, the internet and the consumers - Expectations and Developments will speak. Ms Anne Fielder, Title, Consumer Focus UK; Bertelsmann Representative (invited) ; Mr Alain Heureux, President, Interactive Advertising Bureau Europe; Mr Leslie Harris, President of the Center for Democracy and Technology (USA); Mr Wim Vanryckeghem, Head of Test Achats Internet Department; Mr José Ribeiro: Director General, Consumer Directorate-General at the Ministry of Economy & Innovation, Portugal; European Brand Association (AIM) will be the panelist of the main event.

The full programme for expected 250 "consumer representatives" (?) which probably will have more industry than consumer events normally admit, can be found here. We would appreciate if the Commission which has so much money for such events would also sponsor an event where ECRC could organise a meeting to discuss the present financial crisis and its impact on consumers. Such an event would certainly pay attention also to the Internet but probably not alone.