european commission

Microsoft slips unscathed through EU competition probe after promising to unbundle Teams

Enterprise /

Thanks to a pledge to unbundle its corporate messaging app Teams from its productivity suites, Microsoft has managed to slip unscathed through a major antitrust investigation by the European Commission that could have resulted in massive fines for the tech giant. The Commission on Friday okayed Microsoft’s concessions to address the EU’s competition concerns over […]

Microsoft slips unscathed through EU competition probe after promising to unbundle Teams Read More »

EU fines Google $3.5B over adtech ‘abuse’

Government & Policy /

The European Commission announced this week that it’s fining Google €2.95 billion (just under $3.5 billion). The commission found that Google had violated European Union antitrust rules by favoring its own advertising services. Specifically, the commission said Google “abused” its “dominant positions” by favoring its ad exchange AdX in both its publisher ad server and

EU fines Google $3.5B over adtech ‘abuse’ Read More »

Apple appeals EU’s €500M fine over App Store payment restraints

Apps /

Apple on Monday filed an appeal against the EU’s decision to fine the company €500 million (about $580 million) for not complying with rules that mandate companies to let developers steer users outside the App Store for making purchases, according to multiple reports. The European Commission issued the fine in April, saying that Apple failed

Apple appeals EU’s €500M fine over App Store payment restraints Read More »

EU court fines European Commission for breaching its own data privacy laws

Government & Policy /

A top court has ordered the European Union’s top executive authority to pay €400 (around $410) in damages to a German citizen for breaching its own data protection laws. In a statement, the EU General Court said the European Commission violated the citizen’s rights by transferring some of his personal data to the United States

EU court fines European Commission for breaching its own data privacy laws Read More »

Google nets court win against EU’s $1.7B AdSense antitrust decision

Government & Policy /

Google has succeeded in overturning a $1.7 billion antitrust penalty handed down by the European Union back in March 2019. The €1.49 billion fine, which Google appealed, was originally issued after the European Commission found the tech giant’s search ads brokering business had violated competition rules between 2006 and 2016 to cement a dominant position.

Google nets court win against EU’s $1.7B AdSense antitrust decision Read More »

EU warns X over illegal content risks. Musk replies with Tropic Thunder insult meme

Social /

How is the European Union’s bid to get Elon Musk to follow its rules going? Judging by the memes, not well. You may recall the X owner previously told his own advertisers to “go f*** yourself,” so it’s perhaps little wonder he’s flirting with flipping the bird at Thierry Breton, the commissioner in charge of

EU warns X over illegal content risks. Musk replies with Tropic Thunder insult meme Read More »

Meta’s ‘pay or consent’ model fails EU competition rules, Commission finds

Social /

An investigation conducted by the European Commission has found that Meta’s “pay or consent” offer to Facebook and Instagram users in Europe does not comply with the bloc’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), according to preliminary findings reported by the regulator on Monday. The Commission wrote in a press release that the binary choice Meta offers “forces

Meta’s ‘pay or consent’ model fails EU competition rules, Commission finds Read More »

EU warns Microsoft it could be fined billions over missing GenAI risk info

AI /

The European Union has warned Microsoft that it could be fined up to 1% of its global annual turnover under the bloc’s online governance regime, the Digital Services Act (DSA), after the company failed to respond to a legally binding request for information (RFI) that focused on its generative AI tools. Back in March, the

EU warns Microsoft it could be fined billions over missing GenAI risk info Read More »