Connect - TMT industry newsletter
Welcome to the second edition of our TMT newsletter, Connect. The aim of Connect is to highlight some of the key legal issues we are coming across in the TMT sector.
In this edition, we include three articles which will be of particular interest to growth companies, founders and management teams in the TMT sector: access to public sector sub-contracts, merger reviews, and how to maximize value and manage risk on a Tech Buy-out deal.
In addition, we cast a critical eye over European Regulation 2017/1128 on cross-border portability of online content services in the internal market and also explore the new US CLOUD Act, and whether it is a step forward for Cloud providers.This month we are looking forward to the TMT Finance M&A conference – where we will be chairing the tech M&A panel on “how will technology M&A change the market?” alongside UBS, Oakley Advisors, Gemalto, William Blair and Raymond James.
Finally, for organisations that promote their brand on social media, our IP team will be running a webinar on 15 May which covers the steps and practicalities in removing infringing content from social media platforms; the use by a brand of user generated content; and provide a helpful reminder of the law on hyper-linking. If you would like to register to attend, please click here.
We hope you enjoy the content, and if you have any suggestions for future topics, please get in touch.
New rules on sub-contracting to affect TMT sector
On 10 April, HM Government published Action Note 01/18 “Public Policy Note - Supply Chain Visibility”. The Note presents new measures designed to “level the playing field and increase the visibility of supply chain opportunities to assist suppliers, including SMEs, in bidding for work in its supply chains”. The guidance in the Note will be applied to new projects which are commenced after 1 May 2018.
UK Government to implement new powers for reviewing mergers in key strategic sectors on national security grounds
The UK Government has decided to proceed with proposals to extend its powers to review mergers in certain key strategic sectors on national security grounds. These include the incredibly broad category of the design and maintenance of aspects of computing hardware. Furthermore, the UK turnover threshold has been set at £1 million (the normal threshold is £70 million).
Maximising value and managing risk on a Tech Buy-out deal
It’s currently a sellers’ market for founders and management teams of growth companies in the Technology sector. With the number of private equity funds in the UK at an all-time high, the opportunity for a sale and roll-over to create a PE-backed platform company has never been better. But how do founders maximise value and manage their risk in such a transaction? In this article, we consider recent market trends and provide tips on the art of what is currently possible.
IPO’s consultation on domestic enforcement of the EU Portability Regulation
On 1 April 2018, European Regulation 2017/1128 on cross-border portability of online content services in the internal market (the ‘Regulation’) came into force in all EU member states. This has made it easier for subscribers based in the UK to access their online content services (such as Netflix and HBO) when they are temporarily located in another member state.
CLOUD Act – clever acronym or real certainty for Cloud Service providers?
The US government has just passed a new Act, the CLOUD Act (Clarifying Lawful Overseas Use of Data Act) intended to allow mutual access to data held on overseas servers by national law enforcement authorities. Is this a step forward for Cloud providers to provide certainty to their customers over who can access their data where, or another battleground for privacy campaigners?
For more information please contact Mark Bailey on +44 (0)20 7427 6519 or at mark.bailey@crsblaw.com, or Mark Howard on +44 (0)20 7203 8902 or at mark.howard@crsblaw.com.
