Accelerating The Eu Digital Transition And The Risk Of Increasing Protectionist Trends

Taking into account that the acceleration of the digital transition is evident in all regions of the world and the European Union lags behind the US in terms of digital competitiveness, the EU is stepping up the adoption of initiatives to regulate more strictly the activity of digital companies and digital services. These include both measures to support domestic companies, but also to monitor the competitive environment. The main objectives of this article are: (1) to analyze the EU’s digitalization strategy and vision along with the corresponding determinants; (2) to interpret the EU countries’ positions in global digital competitiveness rankings; (3) to highlight the intensification of digital protectionism through specific instruments to defend consumers’ privacy, public order, security, but also through new initiatives to tax the digital economy, associated with the goal of strengthening the EU’s digital sovereignty.