Regulatory

Contact: Ernesto Apa

Our firm provides its clients with advice on regulatory issues and assistance in connection with consultations and proceedings — including authorizations and disputes — before AGCOM (the Autorità per le Garanzie nelle Comunicazioni - Italy's communications regulator), AGCM (the Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato – Italy's competition authority), the Ministry of Economic Development's Department of Communications, the Data Protection Authority and AAMS (the Amministrazione Autonoma dei Monopoli di Stato - the gaming and betting regulator).

Over the years, we have acquired particularly significant experience in antitrust matters; personal data protection; the regulation of the communications, interactive services and television sectors; advertising and unfair commercial practices; games, gaming and betting and prize draw regulations.

Here are some examples of our work:

assistance with authorization procedures, including broadcasting authorizations and gaming licences
lobbying AGCOM, AAMS, Parliament and the government in connection with proposed legislation and regulation, and drafting documents in response Communications Authority and EU consultations
assistance to 20% of the applicants - including the eventual top-ranked candidate - in the 'beauty contest' to allocate 40% of DTT bandwidth capacity
assistance to the TV operator that obtained the first Italian DTT experimental license
advice on unfair commercial practices and misleading, surreptitious and comparative advertising issues
advice on the regulatory framework for online games and betting, including casino games and cash poker
advice relating to foreign ownership of analogue and DTT networks and assistance with disputes
advice on internet advertising and marketing, including customer profiling, pay-per-click advertising, keyword advertising and search engine marketing
advice on interactive television and web TV
advice on spectrum trading transactions and on the switchover of analogue networks to DTT
advice on regulatory issues in connection with product placement in TV programs, films and games
advice and assistance with regard to the protection of minors (including advertising to minors) and proceedings before the Media and Minors Committee
assistance in legal disputes and administrative proceedings relating to TV ratings
advice on interactive, dynamic and virtual advertising
advice on structuring and organizing TV auctions and TV phone-in games
advice on prize draws and sweepstakes
assistance before the courts, AGCOM and the AGCM relating to channel carriage, licenses and the operation of terrestrial frequencies and sites
assistance in advertising disputes and proceedings before the AGCM with regard to unfair commercial practices, and before AGCOM with regard to TV advertising
assistance to several internet companies in relation to data protection audits, reviews of privacy statements and registration processes and analyses of data protection structures
drafting data transfer agreements
assistance on data protection issues connected to website launches
assistance in relation to proceedings before the Data Protection Authority