IT And Data Protection Newsletter – Germany Winter 2021 Edition

1. Strengthening fair competition - changes to the law against unfair competition

by Dr. Thomas Fischl

The Act to Strengthen Fair Competition only came into force on December 2, 2020, and yet there is already another amendment to the German Unfair Competition Act (UWG) on its way, the Act to Strengthen Consumer Protection in Competition and Trade Law. The aim of the reform of the UWG in 2020 was, in particular, to put a stop to (allegedly widespread) abusive enforcement of the law among competitors. In 2022, it is now planned that consumers will be entitled to compensation for damages in the event of culpable violations of consumer-protection provisions of the UWG by companies. Authorities will also have the option of imposing a fine based on turnover. New regulations are also planned for the labelling of influencer advertising.