MetaverseUA Chair Research Paper #1 – A European Regulatory Framework for the Metaverse

We are pleased to announce the release of the first paper in our series, MetaverseUA Chair Research Papers titled ‘A European Regulatory Framework for the Metaverse‘, authored by Teresa Rodríguez de las Heras Ballet, one of the members of the Chair’s Scientific Committee, and Aurelio López-Tarruella Martínez, the Chair’s Director.

This paper launches our new publication series as part of the Chair’s ongoing research efforts. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be sharing more papers inspired by insights from speakers in our first seminar cycle. These publications will address a range of critical topics, including personal data protection, the legal personality of avatars, and digital identity in the evolving digital landscape.

The abstract of this first publication can be found below:

This Paper aims to explore whether and to which extent the current legal and regulatory framework adopted in the European Union to address the new challenges of a well-developed, still in expansion, and increasingly sophisticated digital economy apply and, if so, are suited to metaverse-related activities, markets, and actors. The analysis is focused on the scope of application and the issues addressed by the three European Digital Acts under study: the DSA (together with the P2B Regulation), the DMA, and the AI Act. It is not aimed to be an in-depth study of these Acts, but an initial assessment of their applicability, the main points of frictions, and the possible gaps or inadequacies given the features of metaverse-related activities. Besides and nonetheless the foregone, the Paper does also provide a non-exhaustive list of other issues, primarily with a private-law perspective, accompanied by some insights and reflections: legal status of avatars, personal data protection, content and behavior moderation, consumer protection, unfair commercial practices, interoperability considerations, law enforcement and dispute resolution.

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