Shomik Panda

Shomik Panda
Shomik is an experienced adviser on EU and UK digital issues and the founder of Inline Policy.
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Recent Posts

UK General Election 2019: Business risks are substantial, whichever way you look

Written by Shomik Panda on 19 Nov 2019

The December 2019 General election will be the fourth election or referendum to take place in the UK in the past five years. Yet despite the unusual timing and general voter fatigue, the stage is set for a high-stake drama: voters are given a last chance to determine whether Brexit ‘gets done’ under UK Prime Minister Johnson’s (Conservative) terms or if a change in direction is warranted.

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Inline at Five: Reflections on founding and growing a political consulting firm

Written by Shomik Panda on 01 Jul 2019

Inline Policy was launched five years ago as the vision of our Founder, Shomik Panda. In this blog, Shomik reflects on the challenges of starting a business from scratch and some of the highlights of the past five years.

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The next phase of regulatory challenges for short-term accommodation rentals

Written by Shomik Panda on 03 Apr 2019

Inline Policy Founder, Shomik Panda, takes the long view of the regulation of short-term accommodation rental platforms and how the sector is working to become more sustainable.

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What does the future hold for Europe’s e-commerce platforms?

Written by Shomik Panda on 08 Feb 2019

Inline Policy's Founder Shomik Panda interviewed Richard Stables, the CEO of e-commerce, advertising and price comparison business Kelkoo Group about how e-commerce is changing, the challenges for regulators and the need for a level playing field.

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The EU Digital Single Market programme reaches the endgame

Written by Shomik Panda on 31 Oct 2018

The European Commission's latest Work Programme lays out its priorities for 2019. It includes a number of regulatory issues for the tech sector to be finalised before May 2019’s European elections; both Digital Single Market (DSM) initiatives and several that fall outside of the DSM umbrella.

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Online gambling in the UK: how to stop the next epidemic

Written by Shomik Panda on 02 Aug 2018

In May of 2018, Her Majesty’s Government announced to great fanfare that the maximum permitted stake on fixed-odds betting terminals will be cut from £100 to £2. But what of online gambling, the largest and faster growing segment of the gambling market?

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EU Digital Single Market Strategy – Has Brussels gone from friend to foe of the tech sector?

Written by Shomik Panda on 22 May 2018

As Mark Zuckerberg takes his seat to answer questions for the first time in the European Parliament, it is a good time to take stock of the EU's Digital Single Market Strategy, assess its successes, and consider the new regulations and policy proposals coming from the European Commission.

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What are the implications of Brexit for Tech firms operating in the UK?

Written by Shomik Panda on 04 Jul 2016

More than a week on from the UK’s decision to leave the EU, the political vacuum at the top of both main UK political parties means that the country’s policy priorities and future direction remain unclear. However, against an uncertain background, some potential implications for the Tech sector can be foreseen:

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Short-term tourist accommodation - 10 points for inclusion in the European Commission’s sharing economy guidelines

Written by Shomik Panda on 21 Apr 2016

The European Commission will soon publish a set of best practice guidelines for the regulation of the sharing economy. The purpose is to support the growth of this emerging sector and also to address any regulatory imbalances that have emerged across Europe in the context of the single market. The guidance will also outline how existing EU regulations should be applied to the sharing economy and consider international best practice. While there are many silos to the sharing economy that will need separate investigation, this article focuses on a key, growing sector – short-term accommodation rentals – and identifies a set of principles that the Commission should consider including in its guidelines.

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Minority report: Election 2015, which businesses should be concerned?

Written by Shomik Panda on 17 Apr 2015

With only 17 days until the UK General election, the two main parties remain deadlocked in the polls, which have moved little since the start of the campaign. The Conservatives’ strong lead on the economy and on leadership, has not been accompanied by enough of a detoxification of their party brand to pull ahead. The Labour Party is more trusted on its values and motives, but the public remains wary of its capacity to govern. The static nature of the polls has extended to the insurgent fringe and nationalist parties’, whose respective bubbles are yet to burst. These parties remain likely to have a considerable impact north of the border and in marginal seats across the UK.

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100 days to go: 10 themes that may come to define the outcome of the UK General Election

Written by Shomik Panda on 27 Jan 2015

With 100 days to go to the most unpredictable UK General Election in a generation, Inline Policy kicks off a series of analysis pieces on the election in the run up to May 7th. We start with ten themes that we believe could help define the outcome of the election:

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The growth of robots in the workplace and the regulatory dilemma

Written by Shomik Panda on 24 Jun 2014

What was once considered a far-off fantasy is now fast becoming reality.  Robots will soon become an integral part of our working lives, and not just in traditional automotive sectors. Inevitably this will have far-reaching consequences for consumers, corporations and governments. This article looks at what is driving the commercialisation of robots, and how governments and corporates are responding.

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UK moves ahead with crowdfunding regulation

Written by Shomik Panda on 16 Jun 2014

The Financial Times recently reported that the amount lent by peer-to-peer websites internationally was almost $3bn in 2013, up from around $100m in 2007. There has been an equally impressive growth in the estimated number of crowdfunding websites, which have grown from 1,100 to 2,700 in the last year alone.

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