CMBA Considerations regarding the upcoming Digital Fairness Act

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Brussels, 15 June 2026. The Creative and Media Business Alliance (CMBA) is an informal coalition of leading European media and creative industry organizations. Ranging from audiovisual, press, music, scientific publishing and literature, our goal is to reaffirm and support the central role our industries play within the European Union.

The media and creative sectors support effective consumer protection, fairness in digital markets, and strong safeguards for minors. European consumers benefit from professional content and media services, and these services differ materially from the digital business models that have prompted regulatory concern. Our sectors invest in and offer professional news, research and editorial and media content; depend on long‑term investment and predictable revenues; operate under existing EU consumer, audiovisual, advertising, data protection, and media laws; and maintain long‑standing relationships of trust with consumers.

Any new obligations under the Digital Fairness Act (DFA) should therefore distinguish between systemic problem areas and sectors where existing safeguards and market practices already deliver positive consumer outcomes. Horizontal market-intervention risks capturing services that do not exhibit the harmful practices the DFA seeks to address.

For the professional media and creative sectors, reductions in revenue predictability, advertising income, or editorial autonomy have direct downstream consequences for investment in content, cultural diversity, and Europe’s global competitiveness. These impacts merit careful assessment before extending new obligations beyond sectors where problems have been clearly identified.

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