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Digital Trade

59 posts

More on Exceptions Language in Digital Trade Agreements

Following up on my earlier posts about exceptions in digital trade chapters/agreements, here's another issue in this same area (thanks to Thomas Streinz for bringing it to my attention). This is the USMCA cross-border transformation of information by electronic means obligation and exception: Article 19.11: Cross-Border

Non-Discrimination Provisions in Digital Trade Chapters/Agreements: "A Digital Product" vs. "Digital Products," and the Impact on Policy Space

I did a couple posts recently on proposed exceptions language in the WTO e-commerce negotiations. My point there was to raise the issue of exceptions that are written in a way that could interfere with non-discriminatory measures that are designed to achieve legitimate public policies. "Necessary," in my

Exceptions Proposals in the WTO E-Commerce Negotiating Text: Part 2

In my last post, I offered a quick take arguing that, in the context of the WTO e-commerce negotiations, governments should rethink necessity tests in exceptions clauses. I was hoping to make the point as broadly as possible, so I focused on the general exceptions clause in the consolidated e-commerce

Exceptions Proposal in WTO E-Commerce Negotiating Text

The website bilaterals.org has posted the WTO E-Commerce consolidated negotiating text from December 2020. (This text is still officially restricted on the WTO website as far as I can see). I was intrigued by one of the formulations in the general exceptions provisions (see Annex I, section (6) on

App Bans and International Trade Obligations

Inside US Trade reports the following discussion of restrictions on TikTok and WeChat at a WTO Council for Trade in Services meeting last week: The U.S. violated World Trade Organization rules with its recently imposed restrictions on Chinese-owned social media platforms TikTok and WeChat, China argued on Friday in

The Discrimination Standard under Section 301

This is from the Section 301 report on France’s Digital Services Tax issued by USTR earlier this week: A. France’s Digital Services Tax Discriminates Against U.S. Digital Companies The evidence collected in this investigation, including witness testimony, written comments, news reports, and expert commentary, indicates that the

Are Social Media Trade Wars Inevitable?

A Washington Post article from last week, which includes the heading "TikTok Rise Could Signal End To Western Web Dominance" in the print version, describes a Chinese social media platform called TikTok as follows: TikTok has quickly become one of America’s most popular mobile apps, a flashy,

U.S. WTO E-commerce Proposal Reads Like USMCA

The United States has put forward a proposal for the recently launched e-commerce talks at the WTO. Bloomberg's Bryce Baschuk broke the news (and uploaded the document), noting there are many similarities to the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) Digital Trade Chapter (19). He's right. A

China and the WTO E-Commerce Talks

In a recent communication related to the Joint Statement on Electronic Commerce in Davos, China said the following: 4.1. Along with the new opportunities provided by electronic commerce, issues such as cyber security, data safety and privacy are increasingly highlighted, bringing unprecedented security risks and regulatory challenges to Members.

Would the New NAFTA Reduce Policy Uncertainty?

This is a key passage from the ITC's USMCA report: Provisions That Reduce Policy Uncertainty for International Data Transfer, Cross-border Services, and Investment Many of the provisions in USMCA represent commitments to maintaining current regulatory conditions. In many of these cases, firms have operated under regulatory conditions in