Digital Services in International Trade Law

The first comprehensive analysis of the applicability of international trade law to digital services at multilateral and regional levels.

Ines Willemyns (Author)

9781108837538, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 30 September 2021

376 pages
23.5 x 15.8 x 2.8 cm, 0.77 kg

Digitisation has significantly impacted international trade. This book explains the impact of digitisation on trade in services, the ensuing concept of 'digital services' and the different types of trade barriers these services face. This book establishes that the legal framework that applies to trade in services also applies to digital services. It elaborates on the scope of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) and how to classify digital services. The relevant GATS obligations are subsequently applied to several case studies that illustrate the barriers to digital services trade. These case studies demonstrate the impact of the applicability of GATS to digital services on countries' international obligations. Finally, the book maps the electronic commerce-related provisions in in regional trade agreements (RTAs). Six extensive e-commerce RTAs are compared in depth and it is considered whether they add substantially to the existing multilateral obligations applicable to digital services trade.

Part I. Digitisation and International Trade: 1. Digitisation and its terminology
2. The impact of digitisation on international trade
3. Barriers to digital services trade
Part II. Classification of Digital Services
4. Digital services and the GATS
5. Classification of digital services within the GATS framework
Part III. Addressing Barriers at the WTO Level: 6. WTO instruments applicable to digital services trade
7. GATS consistency of barriers to digital services trade
Part IV. Addressing Barriers at the RTA Level: 8. Evolution of e-commerce related provisions in RTAs
9. How extensive e-commerce RTAs address barriers to digital services trade.

Subject Areas: International communications & telecommunications law [LBDT], International economic & trade law [LBBM], International law [LB], Law [L]