EU officials agreed late Thursday on the wording of the blockchain digital markets law, part of a long-awaited review of digital regulations with significant implications for the global technology market. The operation, which still needs other approvals, seeks to prevent the biggest tech companies from dominating the digital markets through the threat of fines or even the possibility of the company being liquidated. It targets concerns that applications have moved away from each other, requiring messaging services or social media platforms to “open up and operate with smaller messaging platforms”. Technology companies will also face stricter restrictions on using people’s data for targeted online advertising, a major source of revenue for companies such as Google and Facebook. The new rules highlight how Europe has become a global pacemaker in efforts to limit the power of technology companies through an attack on antitrust investigations, strict data privacy regulations and proposed rules for areas such as artificial intelligence. “What we decided on yesterday will usher in a new era in technology regulation,” MEP Andreas Schwab told a news conference on Friday. The European Consumer Organization, or BEUC, welcomed the agreement, saying it would help consumers create fairer and more competitive digital markets. Technology companies were less enthusiastic. Apple said it was concerned that parts of the Digital Markets Act “would create unnecessary privacy and security vulnerabilities for our users, while others would prohibit us from charging for intellectual property in which we invest heavily.” Google said it would study the text and work with regulators to implement it. “While we support many of DMA’s ambitions on consumer choice and interoperability, we remain concerned that some of the rules could reduce innovation and the choices available to Europeans,” the company said. The operation includes a number of impressive measures that could shake the way large technology companies operate. Companies will not be allowed to rank their products or services higher than others in Internet search results or reuse data collected by different services. A user’s personal data can not be combined for targeted ads unless “explicit consent” is given. Messaging services and social media platforms need to work together to avoid the dominance of a few companies that have already established large user networks. This allows Telegram or Signal users, for example, to exchange messages with WhatsApp users. Violations could be punished with large fines: up to 10% of a company’s annual revenue. For recurrence, a fine of up to 20% of its global turnover can be imposed. That could generate billions of dollars for Silicon Valley’s wealthy companies. Negotiators from the European Parliament and the Council, representing the 27 EU member states, reached an agreement after months of talks. It must now be approved by the Council and the European Parliament.
