The European Commission will continue its investigations into Apple, Meta (Facebook's parent company), Alphabet (Google's subsidiary), and X. In the first three cases, for potential violations of the Digital Markets Act, known as DMA; and in the case of the former Twitter, for doubts about its comment moderation and recommendations system. This will be done despite pressure from magnates Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg and their political rise alongside Donald Trump, who begins his new presidency today and is expected to maneuver to have the EU halt its investigations and not sanction the major U.S. tech companies.
"There is no freeze" of decisions, stated last Thursday the Executive Vice President for the European Green Deal, Frans Timmermans, during his participation in an event organized by the Bruegel think tank. This reaffirmed what the European Commission has been defending all week after some reports suggested otherwise. The Financial Times was the media outlet that emphasized this the most, indicating that Brussels is "reassessing" its investigations due to Trump's inauguration.
However, various EU spokespersons deny that investigations have been halted, frozen, or any other synonym that may be used. In the Brussels bubble, many believe that this is actually what is happening, but the Commission insists. "The European Commission remains fully committed to the effective enforcement of the Digital Markets Act. There are no delays in concluding the open cases of non-compliance, and especially not due to political considerations," EU sources emphasized, highlighting that fines "can amount to up to 10% of the company's global annual turnover."
Furthermore, Timmermans, who chaired the College of Commissioners last week due to the serious pneumonia suffered by President Ursula von der Leyen, announced that "the next round of decisions is expected in March, with all due process guarantees and the right to defense." "The digital reality goes beyond traditional physical borders and creates market positions that can lead to abuse of power by some actors," stressed the former Vice President of the Spanish Government, adding: "We are bound by the law, and honestly, the implementation of any decision and law enforcement is not discriminatory against anyone. It is our duty, and it's not that we are targeting the Chinese for this or the Americans or Europeans for that."
In Meta's case, for example, the Commission initiated its investigation into its payment or consent model and also due to doubts that, as stated by the former Internal Market Commissioner, Thierry Breton, "it has done enough to fulfill the obligations of the Digital Services Act to mitigate the risks of negative effects on the physical and mental health of young Europeans." "We will thoroughly analyze the possible addictive effects of the platforms, the effectiveness of their age verification tools, and the level of minors' privacy in the operation of recommendation systems," he added.
In Alphabet, the investigation focuses on the Google Pay system and Google Search's self-preferences, while in Apple, the Commission believes that its App Store "violates the Digital Markets Act as it prevents app developers from freely directing consumers to alternative channels for offers and content." And in X, the mentioned recommendation system raises many doubts at a time when accusations against Musk for possible interference in the German elections are mounting.