Data protection law

The Swiss price regulator has concluded mutual agreements with internet platforms such as Ricardo and ImmoScout24 for the first time. This novel regulatory measure has potentially far-reaching consequences for digital platform operators, advertisers, and market regulation. We analyze the legal basis, regulatory instruments, and practical consequences of this development in the context of competition law and the digital economy, and show why this step is more than just a “deal” between authorities and tech companies.

A historic ruling strengthens the protection of Swiss indications of origin: The Swiss Federal Institute of Intellectual Property (IGE) has prevailed against Zug-based BDSwiss AG in the Bern Commercial Court. This marks the first time that Swissness legislation has been applied in court. What does this mean for companies, brand strategy, and legal compliance? How will the Swissness criteria affect international corporations based in Switzerland in the future? What needs to be considered in IP due diligence? We explore these questions in this article.

Access control via facial scanning, age classification in e-commerce, voice recognition in customer service, or emotion analysis in video calls – there are many applications for biometric systems in business practice. Artificial intelligence (AI) makes many of these systems better, faster, and more effective. But the use of AI with biometric data not only raises concerns among data protectionists – against the backdrop of the AI Regulation (AI-VO), many companies are asking themselves: Which biometric applications are prohibited under the AI-VO, which are considered high-risk, and when do "only" transparency obligations apply?

Since 1 January 2025, new mandatory rules apply in Switzerland for medium-sized enterprises regarding the waiver of the limited audit (opting out). The decisive change is that such a waiver may now only be declared before the start of a new financial year and no longer retroactively. These statutory amendments entail significant practical and legal consequences for boards of directors, management bodies and SMEs, ranging from deadline planning and commercial register filings to the role of the audit firm.

A landmark ruling by the High Court in London in the Getty Images v. Stability AI case has drawn clear boundaries for trademark and copyright laws in relation to AI image generators. Find out here what consequences this ruling has for rights holders and developers in Switzerland and which questions remain unanswered.

Switzerland is at a turning point in its data policy. With the planned framework law on the secondary use of data, the Federal Council wants to create the legal basis for making existing data sets usable beyond their original purpose. This project touches on central issues of data protection law and requires a precise balance between innovation, legal certainty, and the protection of privacy.

The Swiss Federal Administrative Court (BVGer) has issued a landmark ruling: Artificial intelligence cannot be registered as the inventor of a patent. Only natural persons can claim this status—provided they have participated in the AI process, recognized the invention, and submitted the application. The FAC is thus setting a clear standard for AI-supported innovations—with far-reaching consequences for companies, patent strategies, and future legal developments.

The Hamburg Regional Court, in the so-called Laion case, has become the first German court to rule on whether copyright is infringed when training artificial intelligence (AI). It has dismissed the lawsuit of a photographer, ruling that the use of his photo is justified under the text and data mining exception outlined in § 60d of the German Copyright Act (UrhG).