EU reassesses tech probes into Apple, Google and Meta

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Brussels is reassessing its investigations into tech giants including Apple, Meta and Google, just as US groups are calling on President-elect Donald Trump to intervene against overzealous EU enforcement.

The review, which could lead to the reduction of the European Commission or a change in the powers of the investigations, will include all the cases that started since March last year, according to this year. EU Digital Market RegulationsAccording to two officials briefed on the move.

It comes as the Brussels body begins a new five-year term amid pressure to run top jobs and as Trump prepares to return to the White House next week.

“It’s going to be a whole new ball game with these tech The oligarchs are so close to Trump and are using it to put pressure on us,” said a senior EU diplomat who presented the review. “There is so much up in the air at the moment.”

All decisions and potential fines will be suspended until the review is completed, but technical work on the cases will continue, officials said.

While some of the investigations under review are at an early stage, others are more advanced.

Two other EU officials said Brussels regulators were now waiting for political direction to make final decisions on the Google, Apple and Meta cases.

The review comes as EU lawmakers urge the commission to hold its nerve in the face of US pressure, while Silicon Valley executives hail Trump’s return as the start of an era of lighter tech regulation.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg called on the president-elect on Friday to stop Brussels from fining US tech companies, complaining that EU regulators have forced them to pay “more than $30 billion” in fines over the past 20 years.

Zuckerberg, who recently announced that he intends to eliminate fact-checking on Facebook and Instagram, which potentially violate EU rules, said he is confident the incoming Trump administration wants to protect American interests abroad.

One official said the fallout from Trump’s presidency was a factor in the review, while insisting his victory did not cause it.

The commission said it “remains fully committed to the effective enforcement of its rules.” “There is no delay in closing open non-compliance cases, and especially not for political reasons,” an EU spokesman said.

The ongoing cases were “not yet ready at a technical level”, the spokesman added, arguing that such investigations took time due to their complexity, novelty and “the need for the commission’s decisions to be legally sound”.

Before Trump’s victory, EU regulators had been cracking down on the world’s biggest tech groups, passing a series of reforms aimed at opening up markets and establishing a regulatory framework for Big Tech.

Brussels launched an investigation into Apple, Google and Meta last March under the Digital Markets Act, a law that curbs market abuse by big platforms.

The commission also pressed for the Digital Services Act, a set of rules aimed at protecting online content, to curb tech billionaire Elon Musk’s growing influence in European affairs.

In addition to a similar investigation into Google owner Alphabet, the commission looked into whether Apple prefers its own app store, as well as Facebook owner Meta’s use of personal data for advertising.

Brussels is also consulting Apple’s rivals over the tech giant’s proposals to make its iOS operating system compatible with connected devices.

Denmark’s Margret Vestager and France’s Thierry Breton, both of whom had taken a hard line against US tech companies, left the commission in November.

“Topics can change,” said one [digital rules] they come from the previous committee.”

EU lawmakers have urged regulators to stand firm. MEP Stephanie Yon-Curtin, who was involved in developing the technology rules, said EU investigations could not be sacrificed to avoid diplomatic repercussions.

In a letter to commission president Ursula von der Leyen, Jon-Curtin said the DMA “cannot be held hostage”.

He added: “Please reassure me that your cabinet and you fully support the effective implementation of the DMA without further delay.”