Digital Sovereignty and Weaponized Interdependence in the Digital Markets, with Special Regard to Intellectual Property Law

Abstract

The article examines the evolving power dynamics of global digital markets, with particular emphasis on the geopolitical and regulatory competition between the United States, the European Union, and China. Drawing on the theoretical framework of weaponized interdependence, it explores how digital platforms functioning as critical network nodes within the global digital infrastructure may increasingly serve as instruments of state influence and coercion. The analysis further considers how the European Union, invoking the concept of digital sovereignty, seeks to mitigate its structural lag in digital innovation vis-à-vis the United States and China through a range of regulatory strategies. Particular attention is devoted to the legal nature of control over data, as the article critically examines the normative tension between conceptualizing data as a proprietary legal asset and treating it as a public good. The article argues that, in the context of the ongoing fragmentation of the technological world order – commonly referred to as the “splinternet” – European strategic autonomy can only be sustained if the Union succeeds in reinforcing its regulatory self-determination and ensuring effective control over data for both its citizens and its businesses.