Zero tariff’ options are contrary to the regulation on open internet access

21 september 2021

According to the Court of Justice of the European Union (Judgments in Cases C-854/19, C-5/20 and C-34/20 Press and Information Vodafone and Telekom Deutschland), Zero tariff options are contrary to the regulation on open internet access.

It follows that limitations on bandwidth, tethering or on use when roaming, on account of the activation of such an option, are also incompatible with EU law

A ‘zero tariff’ option is a commercial practice whereby an internet access provider applies a ‘zero tariff’, or a tariff that is more advantageous, to all or part of the data traffic associated with an application or category of specific applications, offered by partners of that access provider. Those data are therefore not counted towards the data volume purchased as part of the basic package. Such an option, offered in the context of limited packages, thus allows internet access providers to increase the attractiveness of their offer.

News archive

 

Firm news

lug13

13/07/2026

Google Android: the Court of Justice upholds Google’s fine of around €4.1 billion

Judgment of the Court of Justice of the EU in Case C-738/22 P | Google and Alphabet v Commission   The appeal brought by Google and its parent company Alphabet against the judgment of the General

lug13

13/07/2026

Judgment of the General Court in Joined Cases T-1079/23, T-1080/23 | Apple v Commission and T-214/24 Apple and Apple Distribution International v Commission

Digital services: the General Court of the EU dismisses Apple’s actions regarding its designation as a gatekeeper in relation to the App Store and iOS The General Court also rules that

lug13

13/07/2026

Opinion of the Advocate General in Cases C-535/25 | Amazon Italia Logistica, C-536/25 | Amazon Italia Services and C-537/25 | Amazon Italia Transport

According to Advocate General Campos Sánchez-Bordona of the Court of Justice of the European Union, companies in the Amazon group provide postal services in Italy Consequently, the requirement