What do you mean by "the original (now decades-old) law" ? The GDPR is 8 years old.
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/ALL/?uri=celex%3A...
And the GDPR's subsequent entry into force created the current emphasis on how actively (and individually) you need to consent to things, and how much you have to be told about them first. Stuff like "clicking anywhere on this site, tells us you consent" was a lot more common, pre-GDPR