The European Union is beginning to go after large technology companies and various social networks. There are more than a few cases in which different EU countries are making moves to regulate the use of these companies to prevent them from engaging in bad corporate practices that affect those nations.
An example of this is the investigation announced by the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, against Alphabet (Google's parent company), Meta (the company that owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, among others) and Apple. The three Big Tech have been accused of not complying with the new regulations they implemented with the Digital Markets Act (DMA).
Specifically, the European Commission opened five investigations: two against Alphabet (for violating address rules in Google Pay and for prioritizing its own services in Google searches), two against Apple (for its address rules in the App Store and Safari's choice screen) and a final one against Meta (for using the 'pay or consent model')
European Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton explained that the companies were considered "gatekeepers" alongside ByteDance, Amazon and Microsoft. Further investigation raised doubts about whether they were doing their jobs correctly.
"We are not convinced that the solutions by Alphabet, Apple and Meta respect their obligations for a fairer and more open digital space for European citizens and businesses," Breton said.
Spain vs. Telegram
The European Union was not the only one to go after a technology company. Last Friday in Spain, Judge Santiago Pedraz issued a temporary suspension order for Telegram's services. At the time, he claimed the decision was a precautionary measure in response to a claim made by several Spanish tech companies that accused the social network of encouraging piracy because it allowed users to share links.
The decision would have gone into effect this Monday but, finally, Judge Pedraz reversed his decision. According to a new ruling, he did so because he considered that the "measure would be excessive and not proportional." In addition, he stated in a document that was accessed by the Spanish newspaper El Mundo that there was a notorious fact that the judge "cannot ignore which is the possible impact on multiple users in the event of a possible suspension and therefore must consider whether or not the measure is proportional":
There are more than multiple users of all kinds who have chosen to use Telegram, providing them with benefits that other platforms do not give. All this under a separate privacy (...). If the suspension were agreed, it would be a clear prejudice to those millions of users who use this messaging application.
BBC's director general claims that social networks cause "polarization and social division"
Meanwhile, the director general of the BBC, Tim Davie, has scheduled a speech to discuss TikTok and social networks. His speech will not be centered on the benefits of these platforms.
Telegraph learned that Davie will give a speech this Tuesday to warn about these social media platforms. During it, the director of BBC is expected to criticize the various platforms for causing "polarization and social division." In addition, he will also call "U.S. and Chinese algorithms the potential tastemakers of the future," adding that "shared moments and unifying cultural experiences are increasingly rare."
