Support our non-partisan non-profit newsroom 💜 Donate now

A new EU law aims to tame tech giants. But enforcing it could turn out to be tricky.

Mar 7, 2024
It imposes hefty fines for scofflaws. But the commission charged with enforcing it has only 80 staffers.
Margrethe Vestager, executive vice president of 'A Europe Fit for the Digital Age' at the European Commission, talks to media in the Berlaymont building in Brussels, Belgium on Monday.
Thierry Monasse/Getty Images

Apple's new app store rules for EU are "complicated by design"

Feb 5, 2024
Apple's App Store has been a crown jewel for the company.
Apple's guidelines for third party app stores and payment systems in Europe  are complicated by design, says analyst Eric Seufert.
Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

What can Ireland teach us about worker productivity?

Dec 26, 2023
Ireland has been ranked the world's most productive country. In part, that was achieved by attracting foreign tech and pharma companies.
People walk near Google's offices in Dublin. The pricey products generated by tech companies in Ireland partially account for the country's worker productivity performance.
Paul Faith/AFP via Getty Images

The European Union takes aim at Chinese subsides for electric vehicles

Oct 4, 2023
The EU has opened a formal investigation and could impose penalties to "level the playing field," while China decries that step as "naked protectionism." European automakers are hoping to avoid the fate of Europe’s solar industry a decade ago, when it was mostly wiped out by low cost Chinese competitors.
EVs made by Chinese car brand BYD were on display the IAA Mobility 2023 international motor show in Munich, Germany. The EU just announced it will probe China's use of subsidies to grow its EV presence.
Leonhard Simon/Getty Images

Apple's new iPhone 15 is just one example of how EU regulation is changing tech

Sep 12, 2023
On issues from data privacy to content moderation, as Europe goes, so goes the tech industry.
Attendees of an Apple event look at the new iPhone 15 on Tuesday. The new iPhone features a USB-C charging port, a change that comes ahead of an EU law requiring common charging systems.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

Has Europe’s highest court made it harder to sanction the assets of Russian oligarchs?

Mar 10, 2023
Anti-money-laundering campaigners say that a recent decision by the European Court of Justice is a blow against financial transparency.
The European Court of Justice, seen above in Luxembourg, recently ruled against a series of registers of true ownership, which are designed to prevent wealthy individuals from hiding their assets.
John Thys/AFP via Getty Images

Europe could dodge a predicted recession, thanks largely to energy policy

Feb 13, 2023
Households and businesses cut consumption by 20%. A mild winter also helped. Conservation efforts and a warm winter helped.
The European economy still faces risks from Russia’s war in Ukraine, but somewhat less than a year ago when the war began,  says Cornell economist Eswar Prasad.
Aris Oikonomou/AFP-Getty Images

For public good, not for profit.

Is Ireland too economically dependent on Big Tech to regulate it properly?

Jan 31, 2023
Ireland is at loggerheads with the European Union over the best way to police American tech giants with European headquarters on Irish soil.
The influx of Big Tech companies to Ireland has helped fuel  the country's economic growth. Above, Google's offices in Dublin.
Paul Faith/AFP via Getty Images

Can the EU break Google and Apple's app store dominance?

Dec 20, 2022
The European Union's Digital Markets Act could have implications beyond Europe's borders — even in the U.S., where similar bills didn't make it through Congress.
Chris Delmas/AFP via Getty Images

What's a "carbon border adjustment mechanism," and what does it mean for U.S. exports?

Dec 14, 2022
The EU already imposes an environmental charge on EU-made goods. Its new plan would assess the same charge on imports.
The European Union implemented the world’s first tax on the carbon content of imported goods Tuesday. Above, a container ship at the port of Hamburg, Germany.
Gregor Fischer/Getty Images