electronic auctions reduce time, transaction costs and bureaucracy and have a pressure on offers downwards, contracting authorities have hesitated about using electronic auctions in their public procurements. This thesis aims to examine the validity of the hesitation of contracting authorities. In order to derive benefits from electronic public procurement tools, the European Union had published new regulations to enable the use of electronic methods before setting new electronic procurement procedures namely dynamic purchasing systems, electronic (reverse) auctions etc., in 2004. The following directives and proposals generated the legal background for electronic auctions: E-Commerce Directive - On certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market, Directive 2000/31/EC. Electronic Signatures Directive - On a Community framework for electronic signatures, Directive 1999/93/EC. Data Protection Directive - On the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, Directive 95/46/EC. Copyright Directive - On the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society, Directive 2001/29/EC. Public Sector Information Proposal On the re-use and commercial exploitation of – public sector documents, COM/2002/207. After these regulations, the European Union published Public Sector Directive (2004/18/EC) in 2004 for the award of public works, public supply and public service contracts, made a definition of electronic (reverse) auctions at Article 1(7) and defined clear rules for the process at Article 54. Public Sector Directive 2004/EC/18 was repealed with effect from 18th April 2016. European Union published a new Directive, 2014/24/EU, on 26th February 2014 however certain features of the provisions about electronic auctions remained unchanged in general. As our sample in this research covers the period between the years 2012 and 2014, we will focus on the provisions in former Public Sector Directive (2004/EC/18) which are also consistent with the latter Directive. The Definition of Electronic Auctions In the Public Sector Directive (2004/18/EC), the European Union clearly authorised member states to use electronic auctions in their procurements. At Article 1 (7) of the Public Sector Directive, electronic (reverse) auction is defined as repetitive process involving an electronic “a device for the presentation of new prices, revised downwards, and/or new values concerning
electronic auctions reduce time, transaction costs and bureaucracy and have a pressure on offers downwards, contracting authorities have hesitated about using electronic auctions in their public procurements. This thesis aims to examine the validity of the hesitation of contracting authorities. In order to derive benefits from electronic public procurement tools, the European Union had published new regulations to enable the use of electronic methods before setting new electronic procurement procedures namely dynamic purchasing systems, electronic (reverse) auctions etc., in 2004. The following directives and proposals generated the legal background for electronic auctions: E-Commerce Directive - On certain legal aspects of information society services, in particular electronic commerce, in the Internal Market, Directive 2000/31/EC. Electronic Signatures Directive - On a Community framework for electronic signatures, Directive 1999/93/EC. Data Protection Directive - On the protection of individuals with regard to the processing of personal data and on the free movement of such data, Directive 95/46/EC. Copyright Directive - On the harmonisation of certain aspects of copyright and related rights in the information society, Directive 2001/29/EC. Public Sector Information Proposal – On the re-use and commercial exploitation of public sector documents, COM/2002/207. After these regulations, the European Union published Public Sector Directive (2004/18/EC) in 2004 for the award of public works, public supply and public service contracts, made a definition of electronic (reverse) auctions at Article 1(7) and defined clear rules for the process at Article 54. Public Sector Directive 2004/EC/18 was repealed with effect from 18th April 2016. European Union published a new Directive, 2014/24/EU, on 26th February 2014 however certain features of the provisions about electronic auctions remained unchanged in general. As our sample in this research covers the period between the years 2012 and 2014, we will focus on the provisions in former Public Sector Directive (2004/EC/18) which are also consistent with the latter Directive. The Definition of Electronic Auctions In the Public Sector Directive (2004/18/EC), the European Union clearly authorised member states to use electronic auctions in their procurements. At Article 1 (7) of the Public Sector Directive, electronic (reverse) auction is defined as “a repetitive process involving an electronic device for the presentation of new prices, revised downwards, and/or new values concerning