The Main Directions of Supranational Regulation of Public Relations in the Digital Sphere at the Present Stage (on the Example of the European Union)

IntroductionThe relevance of the topic chosen for research.

The challenges of the modern digital age create the need for the formation of specific regulation not only at the national, but also at the supranational level. In general, the range of challenges for supranational regulation related to the large–scale digitalization of public life is so wide that today, more and more often, the solution of the relevant problems is provided not separately, but in a comprehensive manner - within the framework of legal regulation of the digital space as a whole. However, such a complex regulation is a combination of a number of areas that are closely related to each other, but, nevertheless, have their own distinctive characteristics within the framework of the supranational regulation of the digital space as a whole. This article is devoted to the study of such separate areas of regulation as components of the general supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere.

Literature review. In the modern legal literature, there are practically no studies devoted to the analysis of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere as a whole. Mostly, researchers focus their attention only on certain areas of such regulation.

In particular, with the increasing role of information and communication technologies, the problems of ensuring the security of the relevant infrastructure began to sound in a new way ^[1], providing access to the creation and development of ICT to foreign legal entities ^[2], the discussion on the creation of special antitrust requirements to be applied in the digital sphere was updated ^[3]. The degree of study of the problem of creating effective legal regulation of the circulation of personal (and non-personal) data in the network space, the protection of this data, their storage and deletion (including within the framework of artificial intelligence systems) has also deepened ^{[4, 5]}. Additional difficulties have arisen in the context of unresolved problems with the protection of intellectual property and copyright in Internet networks ^{[6, 7, 8]}. The importance of studying the features of the formation of a modern legal framework in the field of cybersecurity, digital infrastructure security and protection against cyberterrorism has also increased ^{[9, 10]}. The problems of legal counteraction to the dissemination of false and untrue information on the Internet have gained additional relevance ^{[11, 12]}. Environmental protection issues have begun to be closely associated with the peculiarities of the legal regulation of the digital space ^[13] (primarily in the context of the requirements for climate neutrality and energy efficiency of digital infrastructure facilities).

Nevertheless, the systematization of theoretical knowledge in the relevant field has not yet been carried out, which determines the insufficient degree of scientific elaboration of the topic chosen for research.

The purpose of this study is to use the example of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere, which has developed to date within the framework of the European Union (hereinafter also the EU), to identify key areas of supranational regulation of the digital space as a whole, thereby trying to systematically describe the corresponding direction of supranational integration at the present stage.

The research methods are presented both by general scientific methods (dialectical logic method, analysis, synthesis, inductive-deductive method, system method) and by special scientific methods (comparative legal analysis, historical legal analysis, formal legal method, etc.).

The scientific novelty of this article is predetermined by the fact that it develops the author's approach to the classification of the main directions of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere at the present stage (with the allocation of the most relevant and promising areas of such regulation). At the same time, the corresponding classification acts as the basis for a systematic theoretical description of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere as a whole.

The hypothesis of the study is that at present the supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere has significantly expanded (and continues to expand) due to the inclusion in its composition of fundamentally new spheres of public life that have arisen in connection with the development of information and communication technologies. In particular, such new areas may include supranational regulation of the single market for digital services and supranational antitrust requirements in digital markets, which were introduced at the EU level with the adoption of the Regulation on the Single Market for Digital Services ^[14] (hereinafter also referred to as the DSA) and the Regulation on Competitive and Fair Markets in the Digital Sector ^[15]. (hereinafter also – DMA). In addition, the current initiatives of the European Commission indicate that the EU intends to expand supranational regulation also to the field of artificial intelligence ^[16] (hereinafter also – AI) and crypto assets ^[17].

The main part The directions of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere are very diverse, due to the penetration of digital technologies into all spheres of modern public life.

The most clearly marked feature today is manifested at the level of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere, which today exists (and is being developed) within the framework of the European Union. So, at the EU level, attempts are being made today to form a comprehensive supranational regulation that would fully cover the following main areas:

1. Supranational regulation of the procedure for the circulation of personal data within the framework of a single digital space at the EU level is currently regulated by the General Regulation on the Protection of Personal Data ^[18], according to which communitarian rules are established to ensure the formation of a unified regime for the collection, storage and use of personal data throughout the European Union. In addition, this regulation also establishes the legal regime for the cross-border transfer of personal data and the withdrawal of personal data outside the EU digital space. Also, the Regulations reflect the right of Internet users to a pseudonym, the right to be forgotten on the Internet. The Regulations also establish the presence of special officials authorized to ensure the protection of personal data ^[19].

2. Supranational regulation of the order of access to official state information and other non-personal data in the space of the integration association is also present within the EU.

The relevant communitarian rules were fixed within the framework of the Regulation on the Free Circulation of Non-personal Data in the EU ^[20]. This regulation, in particular, establishes supranational requirements for the storage and processing of non-personal data, features of data storage in the cloud infrastructure, the procedure for access to data by public authorities, rules for electronic document management and features of handling non-personal data in the digital space.

At the same time, in accordance with the provisions of the European Data Strategy ^[21], it is planned to expand supranational regulation of the procedure for handling non-personal data in the digital environment, develop the process of data collection, analysis and exchange, as well as create a communitarian system for providing access to non-personal data for residents of the European Union (especially in the field of B2B business interactions and in the field of citizen interactions with G2C governments). Also, in accordance with the strategy, the principle of free access to certain categories of public data of the EU member States and supranational EU institutions (for example, in the field of healthcare) is enshrined.

3. There are currently no supranational rules in the field of intellectual property and copyright protection in the digital space as an independent direction of supranational regulation in the EU.

However, back in 2011, the European Commission initiated the signing of Memoranda of Understanding between copyright holders on the one hand and persons indirectly contributing to the distribution of counterfeit products via the Internet or creating sources of income for the placement of digital products on the Internet without the consent of their copyright holders. Such persons, in particular, are advertisers who agree to place ads on sites with "pirated" content, online stores, online media and cargo carriers that promote the sale of counterfeit products and other "interested parties" (in terms of the European Commission). At the same time, such memoranda involve the involvement of "interested parties" not only from the EU, but also from third countries.

The most relevant example of such memoranda is the Memorandum of Understanding in the Field of Internet Advertising and Intellectual Property Rights in 2018.^[22] This memorandum was signed following a meeting of all potentially interested parties, including representatives of the advertising industry, online intermediaries, representatives of the Internet content protection sector, online media, copyright holders, representatives of civil society, consumer organizations and advertisers. The parties came to an agreement on the need to limit the income of "pirates" from advertising on sites that violate intellectual property rights.

However, this step was only the first stage in the formation of a supranational EU approach to the protection of intellectual property on the Internet. A major breakthrough in the field of countering copyright infringement on the Internet was made with the adoption of the Regulation on the Single Market for Digital Services (DSA) and the Regulation on Competitive and Fair Markets in the Digital Sector (DMA), which contains a comprehensive regulation of the procedure for protecting intellectual property on the Internet. In particular, the DSA establishes the concept of illegal content, as well as persons providing intermediary digital services (websites, online video hosting, streaming platforms, etc.) are obliged to remove illegal content on the basis of orders from authorized administrative or judicial authorities of EU Member States (such "orders" are applied by EU Member States and earlier, however, the Regulations presuppose the formation of a common supranational legal framework for them).

4. Supranational regulation of the single digital market and the procedure for providing digital services, however, is a key goal of the adoption of DSA and DMA. In addition to measures of additional protection of intellectual property on the Internet, they include a whole system of supranational regulation of the EU single market of digital services. The adoption of these regulations is designed to ensure the formation of an up-to-date mode of functioning of the single digital market with the fullest implementation of the principles of freedom of movement of goods and services in the EU.

At the same time, DSA plays a key role in organizing the free movement of digital services and regulating the specifics of their provision in the EU single market. This regulation covers websites, online hosting, online data storage platforms, as well as any other persons who provide "intermediary" services for the transmission, storage, distribution or placement of information on the Internet.

A distinctive feature of the Digital Services Regulation is the extraterritorial nature of its operation. The obligation to comply with it applies to any persons (regardless of their location, residence or incorporation) providing digital services to individuals and legal entities who are residents of the EU.

5. At the same time, DSA and DMA contain new antitrust rules that are subject to application directly on the Internet and apply to special entities that occupy a dominant position in the digital space ("digital gatekeepers").

Within the framework of this direction of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital environment, DMA already plays a key role. It has implemented the consolidation and institutionalization of a new legal category – digital gatekeepers – IT companies that supply digital services as a basic digital platform, namely: information and intermediary services on the Internet; search services; services for the creation and maintenance of social networks; video sharing services; services in the field of security interpersonal communication; services for the creation and maintenance of operating systems; services in the field of cloud computing. At the same time, the activities of gatekeeper companies to provide advertising services on their digital platforms also fall under the appropriate regulation.

The DMA forms a special legal regime for the functioning of such companies, imposes serious additional responsibilities and restrictions on them. At the same time, in general, the regulation of the activities of digital gatekeepers is carried out by analogy with the regulation of the activities of natural monopolies. Thus, DMA is not just a legal mechanism for supranational regulation of the digital sphere, but a very progressive step for the law as a whole, which at the moment is not highly developed in the field of regulation of digital monopolies and oligopolies.

At the same time, DMA (like DSA) is endowed with extraterritorial effect. Its requirements apply to any gatekeeper companies that provide or offer their services to end users registered or residing in the EU.

6. Supranational regulation of digital public procurement carried out in the single market of the integration association is also actively developing. This area of supranational regulation includes two unrelated aspects: firstly, work is underway to expand the practice of using digital services for public procurement (digital procurement); and, secondly, supranational rules and strategies for public procurement of innovative goods and services (innovation procurement) are being formed.

Within the framework of the first sub-direction, the EU adopted such acts as: the Commission's Communication on end-to-end electronic procurement ^[23]; the Directive on electronic Invoicing in the field of public Procurement ^[24]; the Commission's Executive Regulations on the forms of publication of notifications on public procurement ^[25], as well as certain provisions of the general Directive on Public Procurement ^[26] and a number of other acts. These acts orient the EU Member States to expand the practice of using digital technologies in public procurement, form unified electronic forms of documents, procurement procedures in electronic form, etc.

In turn, the second sub-direction of supranational regulation of digital procurement involves the creation of a common communitarian framework for public procurement in the areas of digital and cloud infrastructure. The legal basis here is the provisions of the Directive on Public Procurement concerning the specifics of procurement activities in innovative areas. In addition, in this area, it is also planned to form a unified communitarian system of public procurement carried out in order to create, develop and maintain the functioning of digital and cloud infrastructure ^[27]. At the same time, the implementation of such purchases is closely linked to the need to improve supranational regulation in the field of ensuring the security of such infrastructure ^[28].

7. Thus, the previous direction of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere is closely related to the communal regulation of ensuring the development, reliability, security, stability and security of information and communication infrastructure.

The formation of a secure, high-performance and sustainable digital infrastructure is one of the key challenges facing the EU supranational regulation at the current stage.

The foundations of the relevant regulation were laid in the revised European Code of Electronic Communications ^[29], which established key requirements for the creation, operation and protection of information and communication infrastructure throughout the European Union. The provisions of the Directive on the Security of Networks and Information Systems of 2016 are devoted to the issues of ensuring the security of information and communication infrastructure^[30]

At the same time, within the framework of the analyzed direction of supranational regulation, fundamentally new aspects are being formed today, no longer related to the ICT infrastructure, but to the cloud. The creation of a cloud infrastructure is planned to be ensured through the activation of innovative procurement, improvement of the communal regulation of the procedure for the circulation of non-personal data, the introduction of Regulations on digital markets and digital services, the creation of a supranational legal framework for the development of cloud computing. The European Data Strategy is the main one for the implementation of relevant activities ^[21].

At the same time, special attention is paid to the issues of ensuring energy efficiency and environmental neutrality ^[31] of the digital and information and communication infrastructure being created and functioning in accordance with the principles of the European Green Pact ^[32]. The formation of an appropriate regulatory mechanism was entrusted to the European Commission, which should develop and approve expanded indices of the digital economy and Society (English Digital Economy and Society Index, DESI ^[33]).

8. Supranational foundations of joint counteraction to cybercrime and cyberterrorism, as well as ensuring cybersecurity.

As part of this direction of supranational regulation at the EU level, the EU Cybersecurity Strategy was adopted in 2013 ^[34]. In 2020 It was replaced by a more relevant EU Cybersecurity Strategy for the Digital Decade ^[35].  In 2016, cybersecurity requirements were reflected in the framework of the Network and Information Systems Security Directive ^[36] (NIS Directive). In 2017, the Commission issued a Recommendation on the General level of security of networks and information systems in the EU ^[37]. A special surge in legislative activity occurred in 2018-2019, when a package of legislative acts in the field of cybersecurity was adopted ^[38], including, among other things, the Regulations on Cybersecurity ^[39]. Also, the Regulation on the Protection of Personal Data, already mentioned above, is aimed at ensuring cybersecurity. It is designed to ensure reliable storage and processing of such data with the maximum reduction of the risks of their leakage. It is expected to establish new requirements for cybersecurity in the field of public procurement.

In addition, in 2021, to ensure cybersecurity at the EU level, a Joint Cybersecurity Unit was created, which ensured closer coordination between supranational EU institutions and public authorities of EU member states ^[40].

9. One of the most relevant areas of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere is the regulation of artificial intelligence systems. Currently, there is still no corresponding regulation at the EU level, but in 2021 the European Commission put forward a proposal to adopt the Artificial Intelligence Regulation ^[41] (Artificial intelligence act, AIA), according to which it is supposed to form a progressive regime of legal regulation of AI based on a risk-oriented approach at the EU level. In addition, within the framework of the relevant regulation, it is proposed to assign differentiated responsibilities and responsibilities to suppliers (developers) and users of the AI system, to create a harmonized European system for conformity assessment, certification and registration of AI systems, as well as to establish special supranational and national authorities with powers in the field of registration and control of the functioning of AI systems. At the same time, it is worth noting that the adoption of the Artificial Intelligence Regulation may allow the EU to become a leader in the relevant field by creating a transparent and effective legal regime for AI, which currently does not exist in any country in the world (in such a context, AIA is considered as a promising instrument of the EU regulatory force ^{[42, 43, 44]}).

10. Another innovative area of supranational regulation of the digital space in the EU has become the regulation of crypto assets. Back in 2020, the European Commission put forward a proposal to adopt a Regulation on Crypto Asset Markets ^[45] (hereinafter also MiCA). In accordance with the draft of this regulation, it is supposed to ensure the incorporation of crypto-assets and crypto-currency exchanges into the system of legal regulation of the capital market, as well as into the sphere of payments. MiCA involves the introduction at the EU level of requirements for the minimum amount of capital of cryptocurrency exchanges and issuers of crypto assets, for their management, for audit and control procedures, compliance, etc. Also, within the framework of MiCA, differentiation of legal regulation of crypto assets is proposed, depending on their type. There are: ordinary crypto assets; secured crypto assets and cryptocurrencies. Depending on the type of crypto asset, various requirements are applicable to it (also specified in the MiCA). At the same time, the importance of adopting MiCA is not only that it is planned to create an effective legal framework for regulating the crypto industry in the EU (which in fact does not exist in any modern legal order), but also to become a leader in the relevant field of legal regulation (which will allow using MiCA as another tool of the EU regulatory force).

Thus, at the EU level, it is currently possible to notice the implementation of a fairly large number of directions of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere. At the same time, the European Union today is a very advanced integration association with a wide range of powers of supranational institutions, which makes it possible to consider its experience as the most advanced.

So, for comparison, at the level of the EAEU, activities are also underway today to form supranational legal foundations for regulating digital public relations. However, the range of issues subject to supranational regulation is much narrower here.

The relevant provisions can be found in the framework of additional protocols to the Treaty on the Eurasian Economic Union ^[46] (in particular, in the Protocol on Information and Communication Technologies and Information Interaction within the Framework of the Eurasian Economic Union ^[47], which establishes the general features of the exchange of non-personal state data within the EAEU). Regulation of public procurement in electronic form is also subject to some harmonization. In addition, the Digital Agenda adopted in 2016 is currently being implemented in the EAEU ^[48], which involves the formation of: 1) digital measurement of integration (electronic document management, supranational databases, inter-state digital services and services); 2) digital markets of the EAEU; 3) digital infrastructures and digital assets of the EAEU ^[49].

However, the noted supranational acts of the EAEU do not contain norms aimed at direct legal regulation of the digital space at the supranational level. The Protocols are a tool for harmonizing national legislation in certain areas, and the EAEU Digital Agenda is only a general strategic planning document that contains only the broadest possible concepts for the development of a single digital sphere.

Conclusion

Today there are the following main directions of supranational regulation of public relations in the digital sphere: 1) supranational regulation of the order of personal data circulation within the single digital space; 2) supranational regulation of the order of access to official state information and other non-personal data in the space of the integration association; 3) supranational rules in the field of intellectual property and copyright protection within the single digital space of the integration association; 4) supranational regulation of the single digital market and the procedure for providing digital services; 5) supranational rules in the field of competition protection and prohibition of discrimination based on the country of origin in the single markets of digital services; 6) supranational regulation of digital public procurement carried out in the single market of the integration association; 7) supranational requirements for reliability, security, sustainability (primarily environmental) and security information and communication infrastructure; 8) supranational foundations for joint counteraction to cybercrime and cyberterrorism, as well as ensuring cybersecurity. At the same time, this list is not exhaustive and may include other areas that may potentially appear in the future. So, in particular, at the EU level, procedures have already been initiated for the adoption of regulations establishing supranational requirements for artificial intelligence systems and crypto assets.