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Technology Briefing – May 2026

Posted on by Deborah King

Welcome to the spring edition of our technology briefing, designed to keep you updated on the latest legal and regulatory developments in the technology sector.

In this edition, we unpack the EU AI Act’s transparency obligations, highlighting recent developments and timelines for compliance. Additionally, we explore how businesses can challenge procurement decisions in government IT contracts and review the CMA’s updated guidance on unfair contract terms marking 10 years since the Consumer Rights Act 2015 was introduced. We also address the latest updates in data protection law. Finally, we cover the UK Government’s recently published Report on Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, which follows its consultation.

Recent Harbottle highlights include advising on the sale of After Party Studios to SISTER Group and launching our Indie Games Collective to mentor early-stage games businesses. We also published a thought leadership piece on AI-enabled cyber threats and, at C5’s AI & crypto fraud conference, Lizzie Williams shared insights on resolving smart contract disputes.

IN THIS EDITION

EU AI Act transparency obligations: latest developments and key obligations

A core requirement imposed by the EU AI Act (the Act) is in respect of transparency obligations for the AI systems used. The majority of the Act is expected to come into force on 2 August 2026. The European Parliament, however, has agreed a proposal that would delay the obligations imposed in respect of high risk AI systems. 

Read more >

Government IT contracts: how to challenge the procurement process

If your business enters into contracts with public sector entities for the provision of IT or related services, you will be familiar with the public sector tender and procurement processes. But are you familiar with what can be done to challenge the outcome of those processes? 

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Unfair contract terms in consumer contracts: new draft guidance from the CMA

If you deal with consumers, then you need to know how consumer law applies to your contract terms and notices. Ten years on from the introduction of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, the Competition and Markets Authority is revising its current guidance on unfair contract terms. 

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UK Government holds off on immediate AI Copyright reform

The Government has published its much-anticipated Report on Copyright and Artificial Intelligence, which follows a consultation that ran from 17 December 2024 to 25 February 2025. 

Read more >

Data protection update

This update includes key developments such as the ICO-HMG memorandum on data protection, new provisions under the Data (Use and Access) Act, guidance on international data transfers and age assurance, and significant enforcement actions like fines for unsolicited marketing, misuse of biometric data, and breaches involving children’s data, alongside global concerns over AI and high-profile investigations. 

Read more >

HARBOTTLE HIGHLIGHTS

Deal announcement: sale of After Party Studios

We have recently advised the shareholders of After Party Studios, a digital-first creative production company, on the sale of a majority stake to SISTER Group. 

Read more >

Harbottle & Lewis Indie Games Collective (IGC)

We recently launched our IGC, a mentorship programme which offers legal guidance to early-stage games businesses, to help them navigate in their next steps in the industry.

Read more >

AI-enabled cybercrime

Our new thought leadership piece, developed with Sodali & Co and LevelBlue, builds on insights from our recent event. It highlights key AI-enabled cyber threats, offers practical talking points, and provides actionable recommendations to support informed discussions with risk, legal, and cyber security teams. 

Read here >

AI & crypto fraud and asset recovery conference

Lizzie Williams recently spoke at this annual conference hosted by C5 Communications. She joined a panel to discuss smart contract disputes: what they are, how to avoid them and how to resolve them. The session proved valuable for those interested in coded contracts.

Please contact our technology experts if you would like to discuss anything in this briefing.

The UK’s Data (Use and Access) Bill passes as Lords’ concede on a push for AI transparency to protect creative industries

Posted on by Dea Dragashi

On 11 June, the House of Lords debated amendments to the Data (Use and Access) Bill (the Bill) and marked the culmination of an extensive “ping-pong” process between the House of Lords and the House of Commons regarding the protections for copyright holders in the context of artificial intelligence (AI).

What was the debate about?

  • The Government’s commitment to protecting copyright holders remains but it argues it cannot act prematurely without completing consultations on the issue. Emphasising the importance of transparency, enforcement and remuneration, it insisted on following due process, which includes analysing over 11,500 consultation responses and establishing technical and parliamentary working groups.
  • Several Lords, including Baroness Kidron and Lord Berkeley of Knighton, expressed frustration at the Government’s inaction. They argued that immediate transparency measures are needed to protect copyright holders from exploitation by AI companies. The creative sector fears that AI systems are using copyrighted works without consent or compensation, which could undermine the livelihoods of artists, writers, musicians and others.

What happened?

In efforts to ensure transparency and incentivise AI developers to comply with copyright law Lord Berkeley of Knighton introduced a new amendment to the Bill requiring AI developers to disclose which copyrighted works they use for training and how they access them, unless a licence has been agreed with rights holders.

Lord Berkeley ultimately withdrew his amendment, citing a desire to maintain the dignity of the House and avoid further unnecessary divisions. However, he and others urged the Government to take the concerns of the creative industries seriously and act swiftly to address them.

What will happen next?

The Bill now awaits Royal Assent and once in force, it will reform elements of the UK GDPR and Privacy Electronic Communications Regulations – from introducing a list of recognised legitimate interests to adding new exceptions to the consent requirements for cookies and similar technologies.

It should be noted that while the UK’s adequacy decision from the EU to allow a free flow of personal data transfers has been extended to 27 December 2025, the Bill does introduce changes to the UK GDPR which ultimately leads to a departure from the EU GDPR. As such, we wait eagerly to see if it decided whether or not the UK’s data protection regime will continue to offer materially equivalent protections in order to maintain the free flow of transfers between the UK and EU.

If you would like more information, please feel free to reach out to one of our dedicated data protection lawyers, or if you would like keep up to date on the latest in data protection, please subscribe to our quarterly newsletter, The Data Download.