Tech services could face EU bans if they breach rules, Thierry Breton says amid criticism over Google ruling
- The European Commission is finalising new draft rules on internet companies, known as the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act
- These come as critics of US tech giants question the EU’s rulings against Google, saying they have not curbed its allegedly anticompetitive behaviour
Technology companies’ services could be banned from the European market if they do not heed EU regulation, Europe’s industry chief Thierry Breton told German weekly Welt am Sonntag, as the European Commission finalises rules on internet companies.
Breton will announce new draft rules known as the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act together with European Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager on December 2.
The rules will set out a list of dos and don’ts for gatekeepers – online companies with market power – forcing them to share data with rivals and regulators and not to promote their services and products unfairly.
The draft rules would allow the EU to ban companies or part of their services from the 27-country bloc as an extreme option. Until the draft rules are adopted EU antitrust and digital regulators do not currently have the power to impose such bans.
“Strict rules must be enforceable”, Breton told Welt am Sonntag.