The regulation of online platforms is a growing trend in the EU, and along with it comes an alphabet soup of acronyms.

For example, here are some of the many regulations you may already know, with their abbreviations:

• P2B – Platform 2 Business
• DMA – Digital Markets Act
• DSA – Digital Services Act
• GDPR – General Data Protection Regulation
• DGA – Data Governance Act
• DA – Data Act
• EMFA – European Media Freedom Act
• …and, last but not least, AIA – Artificial Intelligence Act

What do all these acronyms mean in practice for businesses and for consumers and—in more general terms—for users (or recipients)?

It’s a sort of Scrabble game, isn’t it? Sometimes all you need is a few more letters to help you win the board.

• A stands for Alignment, Access and Adaptation – The new regulations aim at ensuring that member states’ actions are aligned, to create a true single European market for data—one that’s fit for the digital age, also allowing access to more data and a swift adaptation of platforms to the legal nuances.
• B stands for Balance – Achieving a balance in the relationship between platforms and businesses is crucial. The EU regulations seek to strike this balance—fostering competition, transparency and fair, reasonable and non-discriminatory terms and conditions for all categories of recipients (business users and consumers). Balance is also struck between content moderation and freedom of expression, granting consumers the right to challenge platforms’ content moderation decisions through informed notifications when content gets removed or restricted.
• C stands for Control and Consequences – The new regulations introduce more control for users. Users will gain the ability to modify the criteria used for recommended content, to opt out of personalized suggestions and to scrutinize platform actions through independent reports. Additionally, clearer consequences will empower users to seek compensation from intermediary service providers for damage or losses incurred due to law infringements.
• D stands for Digitalization and Data-sharing – Mirroring the increasing digitalization of services, regulations keep pace with the innovative technologies being developed for platforms. They promote innovation by introducing data altruism principles and data-sharing mechanisms, building on the portability right provided by the GDPR.
• E stands for Ethics – Ethical principles take center stage in platform regulation. They promote responsibility and accountability especially regarding data handling and content moderation practices.

We can stop here, for the moment—although there are plenty of other principles in EU platform regulations, the journey all the way to Z is a long one. But there are two more deserving the spotlight:

• F for Fairness – The new regulations not only encourage open and contestable markets, but they also discourage unfair practices identified in the legislation. And from there, we jump down the alphabet a bit.
• T for Transparency – This is the fil rouge connecting all the new rules for online platforms—transparency ranges from providing better information on terms and conditions to describing the functioning of algorithms used for recommending content or products, including advertising.

As the EU continues to shape the digital world, remember: When navigating the vast constellation of regulations, a fair and transparent approach will always be your guiding star.

Fairness and Transparency are not just suggestions: They’re the cornerstones of a regulatory framework that encourages openness, combats unfair practices and insists on clear and transparent communication and practices.