A PYMNTS Company

EU: US Senator accuses Europe of using antitrust cases to disguise tech interests

By  |  January 10, 2016
A Democratic senator has accused Europe of using antitrust cases to disguise its own technology interests, the latest exchange in an ongoing tussle between American tech giants and European governments over privacy.

    Get the Full Story

    Complete the form to unlock this article and enjoy unlimited free access to all PYMNTS content — no additional logins required.

    yesSubscribe to our daily newsletter, PYMNTS Today.

    By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions.

    Virginia’s Mark Warner locked horns with former European digital commissioner Neelie Kroes, who appeared alongside him at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The senator questioned the motives behind the EU’s plans for pan-European data privacy rules.

    “The actions of the EU may have been industrial policy saying, ‘We want to try and support more European tech in the guise of anti-trust’, or for security concerns, saying, ‘We have to locate servers in certain places in terms of locating information’,” he said.

    “That is more about 20th century nationalistic policy than about technology.”

    Kroes headed the EU’s high-profile case against Microsoft, among others, during her decade-long tenure at the European commission, a case that set a precedent for the current antitrust investigation against Google. Microsoft was eventually fined a total of €1.64bn for anticompetitive practices.

    Full content: The Guardian

    Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.