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France Pushes to Widen EU Regulations on Big Tech Companies

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France is pushing for changes to the EU's upcoming regulations on big tech companies, including Apple, Google, Amazon, and Facebook, that would make it easier for governments to penalize bad behavior and widen controls on content, according to a new report by the Financial Times.

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The Digital Services Act, presented in December 2020, is designed to tackle illegal online content in the European Union by obliging big tech companies to quickly remove it, or face hefty fines.

France now wants to change the Digital Services Act by allowing every individual EU member state to have the right to fine big tech companies and force them to remove content on their platforms. Currently, only EU countries where tech companies are headquartered can enforce the EU's laws.

For example, Apple, Google, and Facebook have European headquarters in the Republic of Ireland. This means that, as it stands, only Ireland can sanction these companies or make requests for the removal of content. France's proposition would give all 27 EU member states the ability to punish or control big tech companies in the exact same way Ireland can.

There is, however, concern among EU officials that the French proposals would erode the EU's precious single market. The single market is an agreement designed to make it easy for people, goods, services, and money to move between EU member states, as though it is a single country. Under France's plans, big tech companies would be subject to 27 authorities, instead of just one.

France is also pushing for other changes to the Digital Services Act that would allow it to "include other types of problematic content," including "harmful content and disinformation," broadening the parameters of the "illegal content" that the Digital Services Act is proposing to control.

The Digital Services Act comes hand-in-hand with the Digital Markets Act, which demands that big tech companies share metrics with competitors, ensure that all apps are uninstallable, and do not preference their own apps and services. Companies that fail to do so may face large fines, as high as ten percent of the company's worldwide annual turnover, or even forced disinvestment.

Apple has already gone some way to meeting the rules set out in the Digital Markets Act. For example, as of iOS 10, Apple has allowed users to uninstall default apps. Likewise, last year, Apple adjusted its App Store search algorithm so that fewer of its own apps appear at the top of search results. Nevertheless, Apple will be equally obligated to meet the demands of the legislation, including sharing its internal metrics and data, when the act comes into law.

In recent weeks, France's minister for the digital economy, Cedric O, has met with senior EU officials, including the European commissioner in charge of the upcoming big tech regulations, Thierry Breton, to make the case for these significant changes to the Digital Services Act.

Article Link: France Pushes to Widen EU Regulations on Big Tech Companies
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2021/02/15/france-pushes-to-widen-eu-regulations-on-big-tech/
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MauiPa

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"Likewise, last year, Apple adjusted its App Store search algorithm so that fewer of its own apps appear at the top of search results." I'm calling BS on that. the only time apple software search comes up first is if you use the name of th application itself (Numbers, pages, Music, Mail,Maps, etc.). Any cursory review of keyword searches like docs, Excel, word, sheets, Spotify, etc. do not yield Apple apps first, and never have.

So either apple has pushed down its own apps when you search on the name of the app itself, or this supposition is wrong (it is wrong). That would be like searching for Excel and not seeing results of Excel.
 
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NMBob

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MauiPa said:
Interesting, are you saying that the US (because all of out production is in China, Korea, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, etc) does not produce?
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Oh no. I'm just saying it in general. All "governments" are guilty. They don't want these companies becoming stronger than them...which was already predicted in the movie Network and the most recent big elections. :) My saying is from the one about teaching that is something like 'those that can't teach become administrators'.
 
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827538

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France looking to crush competition and a free market, what's new?

On a serious note, who decides what content is illegal? I've been disgusted by the mass censorship going on and it should worry everyone. I would rather err on the side of allowing inappropriate content than allow more censorship.

The internet was meant to be an open forum, seems like that era is dying and it's becoming a filtered entity controlled by governments and unaccountable multinational corporations.

You may not like Alex Jones or Donald Trump but their coordinated deplatforming off of everything is extremely disturbing and Orwellian. I'm of the old fashioned mindset that I may not agree with what you say but I'll fight for your right to say it.
 
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Psychicbob

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827538 said:
France looking to crush competition and a free market, what's new?

On a serious note, who decides what content is illegal? I've been disgusted by the mass censorship going on and it should worry everyone. I would rather err on the side of allowing inappropriate content than allow more censorship.

The internet was meant to be an open forum, seems like that era is dying and it's becoming a filtered entity controlled by governments and unaccountable multinational corporations.

You may not like Alex Jones or Donald Trump but their coordinated deplatforming off of everything is extremely disturbing and Orwellian. I'm of the old fashioned mindset that I may not agree with what you say but I'll fight for your right to say it.
Click to expand...
Since the internet is essentially the Global Consciousness, the Governments, and secret Governments, all want to control it. When they achieve their aim, they control thought. Obviously, we must fight this tooth and nail.
 
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Lankyman

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827538 said:
France looking to crush competition and a free market, what's new?

On a serious note, who decides what content is illegal? I've been disgusted by the mass censorship going on and it should worry everyone. I would rather err on the side of allowing inappropriate content than allow more censorship.

The internet was meant to be an open forum, seems like that era is dying and it's becoming a filtered entity controlled by governments and unaccountable multinational corporations.

You may not like Alex Jones or Donald Trump but their coordinated deplatforming off of everything is extremely disturbing and Orwellian. I'm of the old fashioned mindset that I may not agree with what you say but I'll fight for your right to say it.
Click to expand...
I said when social media started (and you will have to accept this as a true statement) that while it had the potential to be a force for good it would be used as a tool by those with malign intent or those carrying out nefarious activities and sadly I haven't been proved wrong. It's the biggest threat to democracy the world has ever experienced. I think it's the only time where I've wished something could be uninvented.
 
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luvbug

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Lankyman said:
I said when social media started (and you will have to accept this as a true statement) that while it had the potential to be a force for good it would be used as a tool by those with malign intent or those carrying out nefarious activities and sadly I haven't been proved wrong. It's the biggest threat to democracy the world has ever experienced. I think it's the only time where I've wished something could be uninvented.
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The greatest threat is that so many of us choose, as individuals, to subscribe to that maligned content. As pointed out by a previous post above, the Internet is the group consciousness of humanity. Take a look. Like all of what you see? Apparently a scary large number of people do, in one way or another. The Internet is exposing the underbelly of our species that has always been there but could not interconnect the way it can now. It will be extremely painful, but this will be the most cathartic experience humanity has yet had, and one that it desperately needs to have, if we, as a species, are meant to survive and move forward. We need to experience a Trump just as much as we need to experience a Gandhi in order to come to know ourselves for who we really are, and evolve (or perish). This is nothing more, or less, than the yin and the yang doing their eternal dance. And regardless of who you are, you cannot hold one tightly and shun the other - the Universe doesn't (can't) work that way.
 
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1rottenapple

1rottenapple

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ralphdaily said:
Why is everybody mad at tech companies?
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IMHO tech can be manipulated by foreign governments to sow discontent and division in its population. It’s an effective weapon, misinformation is huge. We see that in the USA and government have difficulty controlling this when it’s enemies can easily manipulate the information using bots, advertising algorithms, and other actors. So I don’t blame governments acting in its interest.
 
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Dkka1

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827538 said:
France looking to crush competition and a free market, what's new?

On a serious note, who decides what content is illegal? I've been disgusted by the mass censorship going on and it should worry everyone. I would rather err on the side of allowing inappropriate content than allow more censorship.

The internet was meant to be an open forum, seems like that era is dying and it's becoming a filtered entity controlled by governments and unaccountable multinational corporations.

You may not like Alex Jones or Donald Trump but their coordinated deplatforming off of everything is extremely disturbing and Orwellian. I'm of the old fashioned mindset that I may not agree with what you say but I'll fight for your right to say it.
Click to expand...
In before the guy who thinks "free market" exists.

"Free market" is a marketing buzz phrase to sell low wages and poor employment protection.

There is no free market when both production inputs and outputs are related to inevitable frictions such as time and space. Do you think those low wage workers would work for peanuts if they could move to the USA or Europe? How is it a free market for them if choosing is forbidden or complicated?
 
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1rottenapple

1rottenapple

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Psychicbob said:
Since the internet is essentially the Global Consciousness, the Governments, and secret Governments, all want to control it. When they achieve their aim, they control thought. Obviously, we must fight this tooth and nail.
Click to expand...
And internet can be easily manipulated by foreign actors. We can’t just think internet is holy and good. It’s easily broken by by those who seek to disrupt and divide.
 
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RedWing512

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1rottenapple said:
IMHO tech can be manipulated by foreign governments to sow discontent and division in its population. It’s an effective weapon, misinformation is huge. We see that in the USA and government have difficulty controlling this when it’s enemies can easily manipulate the information using bots, advertising algorithms, and other actors. So I don’t blame governments acting in its interest.
Click to expand...
Except the same thing can be said for domestic governments, as well. The door swings both ways.
 
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