Showing archive for: “EU”
Should the GDPR Prohibit AI?
The European Data Protection Board’s (EDPB) Nov. 5 stakeholder consultation on AI models and data protection—organized to gather input for an upcoming Irish Data Protection Commission opinion under Article 64(2) of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)—showcased significant lingering disagreement on how the GDPR should apply to AI. While the event was not intended to ... Should the GDPR Prohibit AI?
Preemptive Digital-Platform Rules Are Not Good Competition Policy, But They Were Never Meant to Be
Inspired by the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), a growing number of jurisdictions around the globe either have adopted or are considering adopting frameworks of preemptive digital-competition rules (DCRs) that would more closely regulate the business models of such platforms as Google’s search engine and Amazon’s e-commerce business. The Turkish government may soon join ... Preemptive Digital-Platform Rules Are Not Good Competition Policy, But They Were Never Meant to Be
Draghi Report Highlights Why to Be Wary of the ‘Brussels Effect’
Everyone in Europe, and across the international competition-law sphere, seems to have their own interpretation these days of former Italian Prime Minister and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi’s recent report “The Future of European Competitiveness” (a.k.a., the “Draghi report”). And, of course, those various interpretations, unsurprisingly, inevitably match the interpreter’s policy preferences. This is ... Draghi Report Highlights Why to Be Wary of the ‘Brussels Effect’
Europe’s Latest Antitrust Policy Pronouncement Threatens Innovation
A newly released draft of the European Union’s proposed monopolization guidelines suggest they could pose a new threat to innovative business practices that promote high-tech economic growth. The EU should scrap the draft and U.S. antitrust enforcers should likewise reject its approach. Overregulation Harms EU Economic Growth and Innovation The United States, not Europe, has ... Europe’s Latest Antitrust Policy Pronouncement Threatens Innovation
The Cookie Plan Crumbles: Stuck in the Middle with Google
Google recently announced that it has changed its plans to phase out third-party cookies in the Chrome web browser. The company had previously planned to disable third-party cookies in Chrome, a change supported by many in the privacy-stakeholder community, but which was met with criticism from the adtech industry and competition lawyers. Google’s new plans ... The Cookie Plan Crumbles: Stuck in the Middle with Google
U.S. Antitrust Enforcers Should Reject AI Interventionism
The U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) and Federal Trade Commission (FTC), in tandem with their fellow competition-law enforcers from Europe (the European Commission) and the United Kingdom (the Competition and Markets Authority, or CMA), issued a joint statement July 23 titled “Joint Statement on Competition in Generative AI Foundation Models and AI Products.” This joint statement ... U.S. Antitrust Enforcers Should Reject AI Interventionism
Ms Vestager: Do Not Tear Down This Wall
The European Commission appears resolved to tear down Apple’s “walled garden.”[1] Following a complaint filed by Spotify, the Commission has already fined Apple an exorbitant €1.8 billion for allegedly abusing its dominant position in the market for distributing streaming-music apps to iPhone and iPad users (a case where Apple was found to be dominant in ... Ms Vestager: Do Not Tear Down This Wall
A Positive Agenda for Digital-Competition Enforcement
Reasonable people may disagree about their merits, but digital-competition regulations are now the law of the land in many jurisdictions, including the EU and the UK. Policymakers in those jurisdictions will thus need to successfully navigate heretofore uncharted waters in order to implement these regulations reasonably. In recent comments that we submitted to the UK’s ... A Positive Agenda for Digital-Competition Enforcement
The View from the United Kingdom: A TOTM Q&A with John Fingleton
What is the UK doing in the field of digital-market regulation, and what do you think it is achieving? There are probably four areas to consider. The first is that the UK’s jurisdiction on mergers increased with Brexit. The UK is not subject to the same turnover threshold as under European law, and this enables ... The View from the United Kingdom: A TOTM Q&A with John Fingleton
Should the Federal Government Regulate Artificial Intelligence?
Artificial intelligence is in the public-policy spotlight. In October 2023, the Biden administration issued its Presidential Executive Order on AI, which directed federal agencies to cooperate in protecting the public from potential AI-related harms. President Joe Biden said in his March 2024 State of the Union Address that government enforcers will crack down on the ... Should the Federal Government Regulate Artificial Intelligence?
Google Previews the Coming Tussle Between GDPR and DMA Article 6(11)
Among the less-discussed requirements of the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) is the data-sharing obligation created by Article 6(11). This provision requires firms designated under the law as “gatekeepers” to share “ranking, query, click and view data” with third-party online search engines, while ensuring that any personal data is anonymized. Given how restrictively the ... Google Previews the Coming Tussle Between GDPR and DMA Article 6(11)
Confronting the DMA’s Shaky Suppositions
It’s easy for politicians to make unrealistic promises. Indeed, without a healthy skepticism on the part of the public, they can grow like weeds. In the world of digital policy, the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) has proven fertile ground for just such promises. We’ve been told that large digital platforms are the source ... Confronting the DMA’s Shaky Suppositions
