Save the date - Collaborative economy and new business models' challenges: from promoting innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship to protecting consumers and workers

ACCA and UEAPME are delighted to invite you to a lively panel discussions to discuss the main features of these new business models, the opportunities but also their limits, and how policymakers can support innovation while also protecting consumers, workers and communities.

SAVE-THE-DATE

Collaborative economy

Collaborative economy and new business models’ challenges: from promoting innovation and sustainable entrepreneurship to protecting consumers and workers

 

16 October, Brussels

Residence Palace, Brussels

14.00pm-18.00pm followed by a cocktail reception

 

Collaborative economy 2

While there is - at present - no clear definition of the collaborative economy, a key common characteristic of its associated models is that they provide an economic opportunity for individuals and small businesses to trade their under-utilised assets with other individuals, through intermediaries that efficiently match supply and demand with the help of digital technologies. It is thus fair to say that the wide spreading of digitalisation and internet technology, readily available for consumers and businesses, is the main reason behind the boom of sharing platforms stems. 

Collaborative economy services have been the forerunners of innovative entrepreneurship and new business models, and most of the times these occurs through collaborative, online platforms.

New digital business models and services hold the potential of several opportunities. This entails increasing productivity, but new business models are also expected to drive sustainable entrepreneurship, innovation and transformation, as the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) require entrepreneurship and innovation to foster transitions to future-fit societies that build on values such as responsibility and justice and that no longer destroy the ecological foundations on which they depend.

However, collaborative economy has  also created tensions between the new service providers and existing market operators. In addition, Europe is not yet reaping the full benefits of digitalisation and of the economic rewards that the sharing economy may offer. What are the main obstacles? and what  can we do to unlock them? 

In the EU, regulatory divergence and market fragmentation in digital fields are seen as major impediments to growth and business development as evidenced by the European Commission's 2016 Communication "A European agenda for the collaborative economy". The European Commission is looking at how we can encourage the development of new and innovative services, and the temporary use of assets, while ensuring adequate consumer and social protection. But the challenge is not thin, given the very nature of these new business models and the sharing/collaborative economies. Not only is it fast-moving, digital transformation, which makes it close to try to hit a moving target,  but the sharing/collaborative economies also touch upon a number of areas, such as taxation, labour market laws and regulations, that are national competencies. The key is thus to strike the difficult balance between much-needed clarity and ensuring a level-playing field, without thwarting the development of the European sharing economy. This was also addressed in the  European Parliament report on a European Agenda for the collaborative economy, approved by a large majority of the House on the 15th of June 2017.

ACCA and UEAPME are delighted to invite you to a lively panel discussions to discuss the main features of these new business models, the opportunities but also their limits, and how policymakers can support innovation while also protecting consumers, workers and communities.

 

Confirmed speakers include:

Nicola Danti, MEP; Isidro Laso-Ballesteros, Startup Europe, DGCONNECT; Ann Branch, DG EMPL; David Bradbury, OECD; Willem-Pieter de Groen, CEPS; Romain TrĂ©buil, YOSS; Louise Jansssen, Goods to give; Alexis Hallemans, Nelissen Grade lawyers; Luc Hendrickx, UEAPME, Jimmy Greer, ACCA

 

You can already register to cecile.bonino@accaglobal.com

 

 

Please note that pictures, videos, and audio recordings will be made at this event in which you may be featured. By attending this event, you grant the organisers the right to use such material for non-commercial purposes, including the posting of photos and/or videos on our website. If you wish to object to this, please contact the organisers before the event.