The EU is moving ahead to regulate large tech companies such as Apple, the goal is allowing developers open access to hardware and software.
Regulations
France Seeks Removal of 'Wish' From App Stores, Search Engines
The French administration wants app stores and search engines to remove Wish after an investigation of its products. They found that many of the products listed in Wish don’t meet European standards.
When Wish is notified that it is selling a dangerous good, those products are removed from the marketplace within 24 hours as expected. And yet, “in most cases, those products remain available under a different name, and sometimes even from the same seller. The company doesn’t keep any log related to transactions of non-compliant and dangerous products,” France’s Ministry of the Economy says in its statement.
Apple Hires Economists to Prove App Store is not Anticompetitive
Apple hired economists from the firm Analysis Group who said in a study that the company’s fees are similar to competitors.
Britain Wants Strict Privacy Rules for Kids
Today Britain rolled out strict privacy protections for kids, like requiring tech platforms to turn on protections by default.
The new rules are the most comprehensive protections to arise from heightened global concern that popular online services exploit children’s information, suggest inappropriate content to them and fail to protect them from sexual predators. The British children’s protections far outstrip narrower rules in the United States, which apply only to online services aimed at children under 13.
Lawmakers Want Apple to Turn Privacy Talk into Action
Although Tim Cook vocally supports privacy laws in the United States, Apple doesn’t actually support many of them.
A number of privacy advocates and U.S. lawmakers — who did not attend the meeting — say Apple has not put enough muscle behind any federal effort to tighten privacy laws. And state lawmakers, who are closest to passing rules to limit data sharing, say Apple is an ally in name only — and in fact has contributed to lobbying efforts that might undermine some new data-protection legislation.
This is something I’ve noticed as well. I think Tim and co should do more to support privacy legislation.
Is Europe Going Too Far With Tech Regulation?
Don’t answer that, because the answer is already no. Adam Satariano feels that maybe Europe is going too far when it comes to tech regulation.
Europe has clamped down on violent content, hate speech and misinformation online through a thicket of new laws and regulations over the past five years. Now there are questions about whether the region is going too far, with the rules leading to accusations of censorship and potentially providing cover to some governments to stifle dissent.
The New York Times: Why does Apple control its competitors?? Also The New York Times: Is Europe going too far?? I know that these articles were written by different people, but I still did a double take so hard that now I have whiplash.
After Spotify Complains, EU Launches Apple Music Probe
The European Union is launching an Apple Music probe after Spotify accuses Apple of antitrust since it owns both Apple Music and the App Store.
Ireland Hinders the World on Data Privacy
Despite the introduction of GDPR last year, Ireland has yet to enforce those rules against Silicon Valley tech companies.
Mark Zuckerberg Sweats as Regulators Hungrily Eye Him Up
After the latest Facebook privacy fiasco which involved Instagram passwords, regulators are looking even more closely at Mark Zuckerberg.
France Accuses Internet Archive of Hosting Terrorist Content
The French Internet Referral Unit sent 550 takedown demands to the Internet Archive claiming that it hosts “terrorist propaganda.”