FAQ on e-Commerce Law in Belgium 

February, 2009 - Gerrit Vandendriessche and Sven Van Damme - ALTIUS

GENERAL

1. How can the government’s attitude and approach to internet issues best be described?
The attitude of the Belgian government can be described as positive and their approach is proactive. In 2003, the Belgian authorities announced the introduction of ‘e-government’. The most important initiatives were the introduction of electronic identity cards (e-ID) for all Belgian citizens over 12, and the federal government’s information web-portal. The e-ID cards are smart cards that can be used by Belgian citizens to electronically identify themselves and authenticate their identities. The e-ID cards are also equipped with electronic-signature software, an attempt by the government to encourage e-commerce. Additional government initiatives aim to make citizens more familiar with the internet. For example, the ‘Internet for all’ programme provides government grants towards the cost of buying PCs and internet access, and the Electronic Communications Act of 13 June 2005 requires ISPs to provide schools, hospitals and public libraries with reduced-cost internet access.

LEGISLATION

2. What legislation governs business on the internet?

There is no legislation specifically addressing (business on) the internet. The following Acts lay down rules that can have an impact on business on the internet:
• the Trade Practices Act of 14 July 1991;
• the Personal Data Processing and Privacy Act of 8 December 1992 and the Royal Decree of 13 February 2001, which implemented this Act;
• the Copyright and Associated Rights Act of 30 June 1994;
• the Software Protection Act of 30 June 1994;
• the Brussels-Capital Region Electronic Communications and Broadcasting Act of 30 March 1995;
• the Telecommunications and Electronic Signatures in Judicial and Non-judicial Proceedings Act of 20 October 2000;
• the Computer Crime Prevention Act of 28 November 2000;
• the Electronic Signatures and Certification Services Act of 9 July 2001;
• the Collective Labour Agreement No. 81 on the protection of employees’ electronic communications of 26 April 2002;
• the Electronic Funds Transfer Transactions Act of 17 July 2002;
• the French Community Decree of 27 February 2003 on radiobroadcasting;
• the Information Society Acts of 11 March 2003 (two Acts);
• the Royal Decree regulating advertising by electronic communications of 4 April 2003;
• the Conditional Access Information Society Act of 12 May 2003;
• the Anti-Domain Name Piracy Act of 26 June 2003;
• the Electronic Communications Act of 13 June 2005;
• the Flemish Radio and Television Broadcasting Consolidated Decrees of 4 March 2005;
• the German-speaking Community’s Radio Broadcasting Decree of 27 June 2005;
• the Trusted Third Parties Act of 15 May 2007; and article 314bis of the Belgian Criminal Code on wiretapping.

REGULATORY BODIES

3. Which regulatory bodies are responsible for the regulation of ecommerce and internet access tariffs and charges
There is no specific regulatory body for e-commerce. The Ministry of the Economy (www.mineco.fgov.be) deals with fair trade practices on the internet (pricing, advertising, etc). Dataprotection issues related to the internet or e-commerce are handled by Belgian’s data protection authority (www.privacycommission.be). The regulation of internet access tariffs is done by the Belgian Institute for Post and Telecommunications (www.bipt.be).

JURISDICTION

4. What tests or rules are applied by the courts to determine the jurisdiction for internet-related transactions (or contentions) in cases where the defendant is resident or provides goods or services from outside the jurisdiction?
Different rules apply, depending on whether the defendant is resident in, or provides goods or services from, an EU or a non-EU country. EU (except Denmark) Where a defendant is resident in, or provides goods or services from an EU country, Council Regulation No. 44/2001 of 22 December 2000 on jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement
of judgments in civil and commercial matters applies. In a contractual business-to-business conflict, in the absence of a contractual choice of law, the defendant can be brought before the court of his domicile or registered office or before the court of the place of performance of the obligation.
In contractual business-to-consumer matters, in the absence of a valid contractual choice of law, the consumer can only be brought before the courts of his domicile; professionals can be brought either before the court of the consumer’s domicile, or before the court of their own domicile or registered office. In matters relating to tort, delict or quasi-delict, the courts of the place where the harmful event occurred (or may occur) have jurisdiction. This rule allows Belgian courts to easily confirm their jurisdiction, especially with respect to advertising.

Denmark
Defendants residing in, or providing goods or services from, Denmark are subject to the Brussels Convention of 27 November 1968. The rules of this Convention are quite similar to the ones in Council Regulation No. 44/2001. Non-EU If the defendant is resident in a non-EU country, the Lugano Convention will apply for the EFTA member states.
For other countries, bilateral conventions or the Act of 16 July 2004 will apply. As a general rule, and subject to a number of exceptions, the courts of the defendant’s domicile have jurisdiction.

CONTRACTING ON THE INTERNET

5. Is it possible to form and conclude contracts electronically? If so, how are contracts formed on the internet? Explain whether ‘click wrap’ contracts are enforceable, and if so, what requirements need to be met?
As a rule, a contract is concluded by the mere agreement of the contracting parties without any formalities (principle of consensualism). In the absence of mandatory formalities, contracts concluded electronically are, in principle, valid. If, in exceptional circumstances, an electronic agreement is made subject to formalities, the Information Society Act of 11 March 2003 (implementing the EU E-commerce Directive 2000/31), provides that any legal or regulatory formality necessary to validly conclude electronic agreements, is complied with at the moment the functional characteristics of such a formality are respected. Although the conclusion of an agreement by electronic means does not affect its validity, such agreements do often have a lesser evidentiary value, without however
being of no evidentiary value at all. The evidentiary value of an electronic agreement can be increased by using (advanced) electronic signatures, but the use of this technique is far from widespread, especially in business-to-consumer relationships.
‘Click wrap’ agreements are valid as such, but in order to be enforceable against the customer, the latter must have had the possibility to consult the terms and conditions before entering into the agreement. Also, click wrap agreements do not have the same evidentiary value as agreements signed by hand, but from a practical point of view, the courts will not object to this kind of agreement unless its validity or contents is disputed.

6. Are there any particular laws that govern contracting on the internet? Do these distinguish between business-to-consumer and business-to-business contracts?
The Information Society Act of 11 March 2003 governs the conclusion of agreements via electronic means, for example via the internet. This act contains a number of obligations with respect to the provision of information when entering into an electronic agreement, safeguards to detect input errors, the confirmation and storage of the electronic agreement,
etc. The Act distinguishes between business-to-consumer and business-to-business contracts, to the extent that, in business-to-business contracts, the parties are free to contractually deviate from some of the aforementioned obligations. Business-to-consumer contracts on the Internet are also subject to the rules on distant sales (Trade Practices Act of 14 July 1991). This Act specifies a comprehensive duty on the seller to provide information to the consumer and enshrines the consumer’s right to withdraw from the sale within seven days.

7. How does the law recognise or define digital or e-signatures?
There are two main categories of e-signatures under Belgian law:
• electronic signatures that are always assimilated to a handwritten signature and e-signatures that might (but will not always be) assimilated
• to a handwritten signature.

The first categoryare ‘qualified electronic signatures’. These are admissible as evidence in legal proceedings and shall always receive the same legal consequences as a handwritten signature in similar circumstances. A ‘qualified electronic signature’ is ‘an advanced electronic signature accompanied by a qualified certificate and created by a secure-signature-creation device’ (Act of 9 July 2001). A signature is called ‘advanced’ when it:
• is linked to the signatory in a unique way;
• is capable of identifying the signatory;
• is created through means that the signatory can keep under his exclusive control; and
• is linked to the data on which it is based in such a way that any subsequent change to the data can be detected.
With the currently available technology, only digital signatures can be categorised as ‘qualified electronic signatures’.

The second category of e-signatures is not always assimilated to a handwritten signature. Their admissibility in court and legal value will depend on the court’s assessment of whether the technique used fulfils the following conditions (Act of 20 October 2000), or not:
• it must permit the identification of the signatory (identification);
• it must permit the attribution of the electronic data that constitute the signature to a particular person (non-repudiation);
and
• the electronic data that constitute the signature must not have been changed (integrity).
In practice, when the courts are asked to rule on an agreement, they will only apply this test if one of the parties challenges the validity of the agreement.

8. Are there any data retention or software legacy requirements in relation to the formation of electronic contracts?
There are a few rules that indirectly impose data retention requirements in relation to the formation of electronic contracts. The Information Society Act of 11 March 2003 requires that the information society service provider must keep evidence of having fulfilled its duty of information and having issued an order confirmation.
• The Royal Decree of 4 April 2003 regulating advertisements by electronic communications requires information society service providers to keep a list of persons who have indicated that they do not wish to receive advertisements.
• With regard to distant contracts, the seller must be able to prove that he has fulfilled all the requirements imposed by the distant sales rules.

Further, the Electronic Signatures and Certification Services Act of 9 July 2001 requires providers of qualified certificates to record all relevant information about each qualified certificate and to retain it for 30 years, in particular for the provision of evidence in legal proceedings.

SECURITY

9. What measures must be taken by companies or ISPs to guarantee the security of internet
transactions?
The Electronic Communications Act of 13 June 2005 requires providers of electronic communications services and providers of software for electronic communications to implement state-of-the-art technical and organisational measures to ensure the security of their networks. They also have to ensure that their customers have the appropriate
means to prevent unsolicited electronic communications. Should this security be breached, they must take all necessary measures to inform the competent authorities and their customers as soon as possible. The Belgian data protection authority has outlined several ‘reference measures’ designed to guide data controllers in their adoption of appropriate security measures when processing personal data.

10. As regards encrypted communications, can any authorities require private keys to be made available? Are certification authorities permitted? Are they regulated and are there any laws as to their liability?
The use of cryptographic technology is allowed. Examining magistrates are entitled to request the release of encryption keys only as part of a current criminal investigation. Electronic certification services are governed by the Act of 9 July 2001. Under this Act, the offer of certification services is free and cannot be subject to a licence, authorisation or notification. However, if a certification service provider wishes to issue qualified certificates, he has to fulfil more qualitative requirements and to notify the Ministry of the Economy. In claims for damages from parties who have reasonably relied on an digital certificate issued by a certification service provider, the provider can be held liable in the following circumstances (Act of 9 July 2001): the data on the certificate is not accurate, the identity of the signatory was not properly checked, or the data needed for making and verifying an electronic signature generated by the certification service provider cannot be used in a complimentary way. The certification service provider can exonerate itself from any liability if it proves it did not act negligently.

DOMAIN NAMES

11. What procedures are in place to regulate the licensing of domain names? Is it possible to register a country-specific domain name without being a resident in the country?
Applications for Belgian domain (.be) names have to be made via one of the registered agents of DNS Belgium, the Belgian domain-name authority. Domain names are allocated on a ‘first come, first served’ basis. There is no requirement for the applicant of a Belgian domain name to be resident in Belgium.

12. Do domain names confer any additional rights (for instance in relation to trademarks or passing off) beyond the rights that naturally vest in the domain name?
The registration of a domain names does not in itself confer any additional rights, but the use of a domain name can constitute rights as a sign or as a tradename.

13. Will ownership of a trademark assist in challenging a ‘pirate’ registration of a similar
domain name?
Ownership of a trademark can assist in challenging a ‘pirate’ registration of a similar domain name. In the event of abusive domain name registrations, the Anti-Domain Name Piracy Act of 26 June 2003 empowers the courts to order the transfer of ‘.be’ domain names or of other domain names held by a person with a domicile or registered office in Belgium. Relief against abusive domain name registrations in other circumstances can be sought through the Trade Practices Act of 14 July 1991.

ADVERTISING

14. What rules govern advertising on the internet?

  • Trade Practices Act of 14 July 1991.
This Act regulates advertising in general, and also applies to advertising on the Internet. The Act makes a distinction between advertising addressed to traders, advertising addressed to consumers and comparative advertisements. Misleading, denigrating, confusing and unfair advertisement between traders is prohibited. For advertising towards consumers, the Act was recently amended to implement EU Directive 2005/29 concerning unfair business-to-consumer commercial practices. The new stipulations prohibit unfair commercial practices in general, with special attention paid to misleading and aggressive commercial practices.
  • Information Society Act of 11 March 2003
Advertising that is part of, or constitutes, an information society service must at least comply with the following conditions:
• advertisements should be clearly identifiable as such;
• the (natural or legal) person on whose behalf the advertising is made should be clearly identifiable; and promotional competitions or games and promotional offers should be clearly identifiable as such, and the conditions that have to be met to qualify for them should be easily accessible and
• be presented clearly and unambiguously.
This Act also governs unsolicited advertisements by electronic communications.

  • Sector-specific ‘soft law’
Finally, in Belgium some sectors have adopted ‘soft law’ with respect to advertising. Examples are the Codes of Conduct of Febelfin (the Belgian Financial Sector Federation) and of the Belgian Direct Marketing Association.

15. Are there any products or services that may not be advertised or types of content that are not permitted on the internet?
No advertising prohibitions specifically apply to the internet. There are, of course, a number of products and services for which advertising is restricted in general, for example tobacco products, sexual services by or destined for minors, medicines, etc.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

16. Is the advertising or selling of financial services products to consumers or to businesses via the internet regulated, and if so by whom and how?
The advertising or selling of financial services to consumers or to businesses via the internet is not regulated as such, but is subject to the following legislation, which governs any advertising or selling of financial services:
• the Information Society Act of 11 March 2003 (B2B and B2C);
• the Trade Practices Act of 14 July 1991 (B2B and B2C);
• the Financial Markets & Services Act of 2 August 2002 (B2B andB2C);
• the Electronic Funds Transfer Act of 17 July 2002 (B2C); and
• the Consumer Credit Act of 12 June 1991 (B2C).

Although these Acts all have different emphases, most of the obligations resulting from them concern (broad) dutiesto provide information, the right to withdraw from the agreement, mandatory language in the pre-contractual and contractual phase, advertising requirements, etc. The advertising and selling of financial services is subject to the
scrutiny of the Belgian financial watchdog (the Banking, Finance and Insurance Commission or CBFA, www.cbfa.be) that has issued several formal and informal guidelines, and to the Ministry of the Economy (www.mineco.fgov.be).

DEFAMATION

17. Are ISPs liable for content displayed on their sites?

An ISP is liable for any content it displays itself on its website (eg, corporate website or web portal) in accordance with the liability rules under Belgian common law. The liability of an ISP for content posted on its websites by third parties or for content posted by its customers on websites hosted on its servers, should be assessed under the Information Society Act of 11 March 2003, which implemented in Belgium the European Union’s liability regime for intermediary service providers. As a hosting provider, an ISP does not have a general monitoring obligation and it is not liable for the content it hosts, provided that (i) it does not have actual knowledge of illegal activities from a criminal law point of view or it is not aware of facts or circumstances from which the illegal activity or information is apparent from a civil law point of view, (ii) the ISP, upon obtaining such knowledge or awareness, acts expeditiously to remove or to disable access to the information, and (iii) it reports the illegal activity or information immediately to the public prosecutor. As long as the public prosecutor does not take a decision as to the copying of, disabling of access to, or the deletion of illegal information, the ISP is only allowed to
disable access to such information.

18. Can an ISP shut down a web page containing defamatory material without court
authorisation?
An ISP can shut down a web page containing defamatory material without court authorisation, provided it has informed the public prosecutor of such material and that it does not delete the material.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

19. Can a website owner link to third-party websites without permission?
There are no specific laws with respect to hyperlinking. Most Belgian legal scholars agree that ‘surface linking’ (ie, linking to the home page of another website) is acceptable, and that no permission is needed from the linked website’s owner. ‘Frame linking’ is, however, not recommended as it could constitute a misleading trade practice, unless consent is obtained from the website owner concerned. Due to possible copyright infringements, ‘inline links’ should also be avoided, unless consent has been obtained. Finally, whatever type of hyperlink is used (surface-, deep-, inline- or framelink), Belgian courts have already ruled that if the hyperlink’s presentation constitutes a partial copy of the source to which it links, this could also constitute a copyright infringement (see Copiepresse v Google case).

20. Can a website owner use third-party content on its website without permission from
the third-party content provider?
Website content is clearly protected under Belgian copyright law. Hence, website owners should refrain from using third-party content without permission from the third-party content provider, unless they can rely on the limited exceptions to copyright (eg parody, quotations, educational or scientific purpose). In addition, the use of third-party content could also constitute an unlawful extraction of data from a database, provided that the content on the thirdparty website qualifies as a database for legal purposes of the Belgian Database Act of 31 August 1998.

21. Can a website owner exploit the software used for a website by licensing the software
to third parties?
If the website owner owns the intellectual property rights to the software, it may license it to third parties. If it is only a licensed user of third-party software, it will have to ask permission to license such software.

22. Are any liabilities incurred by links to third-party websites?
By using certain types of links or by presenting links as a partial reproduction of the content to which is linked, liability for committing an unfair commercial trade practice or for copyright infringement can be incurred. See also question 19.

DATA PROTECTION AND PRIVACY

23. What legislation defines ‘personal data’ within the jurisdiction?
Personal data are defined in the Personal Data Processing and Privacy Act of 8 December 1992 as ‘information relating to an identified or identifiable natural person’. A person is considered ‘identifiable’ if he or she ‘can be identified, either directly or indirectly, in particular by reference to an identification number or to one or more factors
specific to his or her physical, physiological, mental, economic, cultural or social identity’.

24. Does a website owner have to register with any controlling body to process personal data? May a website provider sell personal data about website users to third parties?
If the website owner is subject to the Personal Data Processing and Privacy Act of 8 December 1992, it will have to notify the data processing to the Belgian data protection authority. A website provider can only sell personal data about website use to third parties if the data subjects were clearly informed of the purpose of the processing and of the recipient of the personal data, and have given their consent.

25. If a website owner is intending to profile its customer base to target advertising on its
website, is this regulated in your jurisdiction?
The use of personal data for profiling purposes is not prohibited nor regulated as such, but it must obey the rules on data protection and advertising. For example, customers have to be informed of the purpose of the profiling and must be given the right to opt-out. If the data are used for e-mail, SMS or other electronic advertising, the customer must opt-in. The Electronic Communications Act of 13 June 2005 also gives customers the right to refuse cookies.

26. If an internet company’s server is located outside the jurisdiction, are any legal problems created when transferring and processing personal data?
An internet company based in Belgium can locate its server in any country of the European Economic Area (EEA) without legal issues. However, if such server is located in a country outside the EEA, the transfer of personal data to that country is forbidden, except if:
• the country in which the server is located ensures an adequate level of protection; or
• the data subject has given his or her unambiguous consent to the transfer; or
• the transfer is necessary for the performance of a contract between the data subject and the controller, or the implementation of pre-contractual measures taken in response to the data
• subject’s request; or
• the transfer is necessary for the conclusion or performance of a contract concluded in the interest of the data subject between the controller and a third party; or
• the transfer is necessary or legally required on public interest grounds, or for the establishment, exercise or defence of legal claims; or
• the transfer is necessary in order to protect the vital interests of the data subject.

TAXATION

27. Is the sale of online products (for example, software downloaded directly from a website) subject to taxation?
The income derived from online sales will only be taxed when it was derived from a transaction via a ‘permanent establishment’ on Belgian territory (‘permanent establishment’ means a fixed place of business through which the business of an enterprise is wholly or partly carried out). In principle, a mere website cannot be considered as a
permanent establishment.

28. What tax liabilities ensue from placing servers outside operators’ home jurisdictions?
Does the placing of servers within a jurisdiction by a company incorporated outside the
jurisdiction expose that company to local taxes?

In principle, in Belgium a server is not considered to be a ‘permanent establishment’. Therefore, if only a server is placed in Belgium, it will not create taxable income.

29. When and where should companies register for VAT or other sales taxes? How are domestic internet sales taxed?
If the customer is a taxable person established in the EU, electronic services will be deemed to be supplied at the place where the customer is located. This means that non-EU suppliers do not have to register for VAT in the EU, and the customer will have to pay VAT on the service supplied. If the customer is a consumer located in the EU, the non-EU company will have to register for VAT purposes in the EU, and will have to charge and pay VAT at the rate set in its country of establishment.

30. If an offshore company is used to supply goods over the internet, how will returns (goods returned in exchange for a refund) be treated for tax purposes? What transfer-pricing problems might arise from customers returning goods to an onshore retail outlet of an offshore company set up to supply the goods?
In so far as the outlet constitutes a ‘permanent establishment’ of the offshore company, profit may have to be allocated to it corresponding to the fee the offshore company would have had to pay to a thirdparty service provider, and tax would be payable on this profit.

GAMBLING

31. Is it permissible to operate an online betting or gaming business from the jurisdiction?
There are no specific rules with regard to online betting or gaming. Most online betting or gaming is subject to the Gambling Act of 7 May 1999, which prohibits all gambling, except when licensed by the Gaming Commission. As these licences are only granted to establishments that have charitable objectives, none have yet been granted to online establishments and so it could be said that the operation from Belgium of online gambling is de facto impossible. The Lotteries Act of 19 April 2002 reserves the exclusive right to hold lotteries in Belgium to the national lottery. The Act of 26 June 1963 requires a licence for the organization of sports betting in which participants play against and among each other in such a way that the organiser does not incur any risk (ie, pool betting). For other
types of sports betting (eg, fixed odd betting), no licence is required (except for betting on horse races).

32. Are residents permitted to use online casinos and betting websites? Is any regulatory consent or age, credit or other verification required?
Online casinos and betting websites are considered as games of chance and subject to the Gambling Act of 7 May 1999. As mentioned above, the organisation of games of chance is prohibited unless a licence is obtained from the Gaming Commission. The use of casino or betting websites is not prohibited and thus allowed. The Gambling Act contains age requirements for certain categories of games of chance, but these requirements do not seem to apply to games of chance organised online.

OUTSOURCING

33. What are the key legal and tax issues relevant in considering the provision of services on an outsourced basis?

Key legal issues with respect to outsourcing are intellectual property rights (IP transfer, IP licences, ownership of new IP developments), data protection, liability, employment matters (if employees are transferred to the outsourcer), SLAs, corporate law implications (if the outsourced activities constitute a separate branch or result in the transfer
of certain company assets or rights), exit clauses and reversibility of the outsourcing process. The key tax issue is that outsourcing usually replaces employees with contractors, which reduces employee costs while increasing expenditure.

34. What are the rights of employees who previously carried out services that have been
outsourced? Is there any right to consultation or compensation, do the rules apply to all
employees within the jurisdiction?
Employees whose jobs are outsourced can claim their rights under the Collective Labour Agreement No. 32 bis (hereafter CLA32) which safeguards employees’ rights when businesses or parts of businesses are transferred to new owners.
For CLA32 to apply, the following three conditions have to be fulfilled simultaneously: there has to be an effective change of employer, the transfer has to relate to a company, or at least a part thereof (eg, an activity that is outsourced qualifies for this), and the transfer has to be contractual. If CLA32 applies, all employees employed within the company or part of the company that is transferred must be taken over by the outsourcer. All the
relevant employment contracts existing at the time of the outsourcing will automatically pass to the transferee on the date of the transfer. CLA32 also specifies that the transfer in itself does not constitute grounds for dismissal of the transferred employees. Exceptions, however, exist for dismissals for just cause, as well as dismissals caused by economical, technical or organisational reasons.

ONLINE PUBLISHING

35. When would a website provider be liable for mistakes in information that it provides online? Can it avoid that liability?
A website provider is liable under Belgian common-law liability rules for the information it provides online. The website provider can limit its liability, but not exonerate itself from it entirely. The extent to which such exoneration is allowed depends on the party suffering the damages (professional or consumer), the type of liability, and the type of fault.

36. If a website provider includes databases on its site, can it stop other people from using or reproducing data from those databases?
If the contents of its database are copyright-protected, the website provider can act based on copyright law. In addition, if the database qualifies for protection under the Database Act of 31 August 1998, a website provider has the right to challenge the extraction and reutilization of all or part (evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively) of the contents of the database.

 


Footnotes:


UPDATES AND TRENDS
• Government review of the Trade Practies Act of 14 July 1991 proposed, among other things, to abolish the prohibition on joint offers.
• Government review of the rules relating to online gaming and entertainment.
• Government amendment of the Acts of 14 July 1991 and 11 March 2003 is expected to reinforce protection for minors, and is currently under parliamentary discussion.
• Government amendment of the Act of 13 June 2005 to impose an obligation on operators to draft an acceptable use policy for their users is currently under parliamentary discussion.
• Government amendment of the Act of 13 June 2005 to impose an obligation on operators to offer their clients a free option to block paid-for SMS messages is currently under parliamentary discussion.
• Government amendment of the Act of 13 June 2005 to improve the privacy protection for location-based services is currently under parliamentary discussion.
• Draft Royal Decree imposing on operators a minimum 24 - month data retention period

For any further information please contact
Gerrit Vandendriessche

Altius Brussels - main office
Tour & Taxis
Havenlaan 86C box 414 Avenue du Port
1000 Brussels
Belgium
tel +32 2 426 14 14
fax +32 2 426 20 30
gerrit.vandendriessche@altius.com

Gerrit Vandendriessche is a partner at ALTIUS where he runs the ICT practice. He has a general commercial background with a strong focus in ICT-related matters. He assists hardware manufacturers, software developers, system integrators, e-commerce actors, telecommunications operators and suppliers of other ICT-related services such as consulting, support and maintenance services. He regularly advises on data protection, e-commerce, digital signatures, trade practices matters including (on-line) advertising, and general commercial law. He also conducts ICT-related litigation.

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