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And how would Europe make an American company offer services to Europeans? Is there a legal pathway to do this or would their court summons be used to level out

And how would Europe make an American company offer services to Europeans? Is there a legal pathway to do this or would their court summons be used to level out chairs in FB HQ?

KozmoNau7 8y ago
FB is already in a shitstorm of bad PR. They have a very easy choice actually. Either abide by the rules if they want to service EU citizens, or GTFO. If they want to give up a couple hundred million users and hand them over to the GDPR-compliant competition, that's their choice. It would be monumentally stupid, though. FB needs EU users a lot more than EU users need FB, but they're trying very hard to spin the press to make it appear the other way around. It's like when McDonalds or a similar tax-dodging company threatens to leave a country if they face being forced to actually pay the taxes they owe. Leave millions and millions in profit right there on the table for their competitors to grab? Yeah right, ain't gonna happen.
- frockington 8y ago
  http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8327185.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8327185.stm - McDonalds pulled out of Iceland when it became to expensive. I wonder if the EU is going to price itself out of international technology. The affect would be less than ideal for a continent that preaches globalization
  - KozmoNau7 8y ago
    They pulled out of one of the smallest markets they could find, as a PR move to "show that they mean business". They had three restaurants in the entire country, and they pulled out because of the financial crisis, not because of taxes. That's hardly a sign that they would pull out of France, Germany or even Denmark. If by "international technology" you mean "blatant disregard for privacy", then good riddance. We don't need that sort of "technology".
    - jacquesm 8y ago
      If McDonalds were to pull out of France there would be quite a few happy French people.
      - KozmoNau7 8y ago
        Absolutely. I would not miss them at all here in Denmark, either. We have so many better cafés and fast food restaurants. We absolutely would not miss their bland junk.
  - padthai 8y ago
    I am not sure if losing Facebook access counts as losing any kind of "technology". They cannot block the use of their FOSS code in Europe, isn't? I am not sure the impact of closing their offices in Europe, though I am sure their the most interesting work is done in USA.
    - frockington 8y ago
      I agree that Facebook isn't really "technology" and that losing it would probably be a net positive. I am worried that Europe will set a precedent that will discourage internet technologies from doing business in Europe disconnecting them from the world.
      - KozmoNau7 8y ago
        Why are you worried about that? It would only impact tech that depends on privacy violation and tracking. Good riddance, I say.
        deleted 8y ago
        [deleted]
      - kijin 8y ago
        If American tech companies ever pull out of Europe, other startups will quickly fill the void. After all, it's not like the technology isn't available in Europe. Somebody just needs to build a product using it. That would be great for diversity, not to mention provide a fertile playground for much-needed alternatives. Too bad it probably won't happen.
jacquesm 8y ago
FB has a European HQ.
gnode 8y ago
They can't force Facebook to provide any service, but they can present them with an ultimatum: decouple use of the platform from consent for use of personal data for tracking, don't offer said service, or pay a fine.

And how would Europe make an American company offer services to Europeans? Is there a legal pathway to do this or would their court summons be used to level out chairs in FB HQ?

KozmoNau7 8y ago

FB is already in a shitstorm of bad PR. They have a very easy choice actually. Either abide by the rules if they want to service EU citizens, or GTFO. If they want to give up a couple hundred million users and hand them over to the GDPR-compliant competition, that's their choice. It would be monumentally stupid, though. FB needs EU users a lot more than EU users need FB, but they're trying very hard to spin the press to make it appear the other way around. It's like when McDonalds or a similar tax-dodging company threatens to leave a country if they face being forced to actually pay the taxes they owe. Leave millions and millions in profit right there on the table for their competitors to grab? Yeah right, ain't gonna happen.

frockington 8y ago
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8327185.stm http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/8327185.stm - McDonalds pulled out of Iceland when it became to expensive. I wonder if the EU is going to price itself out of international technology. The affect would be less than ideal for a continent that preaches globalization
- KozmoNau7 8y ago
  They pulled out of one of the smallest markets they could find, as a PR move to "show that they mean business". They had three restaurants in the entire country, and they pulled out because of the financial crisis, not because of taxes. That's hardly a sign that they would pull out of France, Germany or even Denmark. If by "international technology" you mean "blatant disregard for privacy", then good riddance. We don't need that sort of "technology".
  - jacquesm 8y ago
    If McDonalds were to pull out of France there would be quite a few happy French people.
    - KozmoNau7 8y ago
      Absolutely. I would not miss them at all here in Denmark, either. We have so many better cafés and fast food restaurants. We absolutely would not miss their bland junk.
- padthai 8y ago
  I am not sure if losing Facebook access counts as losing any kind of "technology". They cannot block the use of their FOSS code in Europe, isn't? I am not sure the impact of closing their offices in Europe, though I am sure their the most interesting work is done in USA.
  - frockington 8y ago
    I agree that Facebook isn't really "technology" and that losing it would probably be a net positive. I am worried that Europe will set a precedent that will discourage internet technologies from doing business in Europe disconnecting them from the world.
    - KozmoNau7 8y ago
      Why are you worried about that? It would only impact tech that depends on privacy violation and tracking. Good riddance, I say.
      - deleted 8y ago
        [deleted]
    - kijin 8y ago
      If American tech companies ever pull out of Europe, other startups will quickly fill the void. After all, it's not like the technology isn't available in Europe. Somebody just needs to build a product using it. That would be great for diversity, not to mention provide a fertile playground for much-needed alternatives. Too bad it probably won't happen.

jacquesm 8y ago

FB has a European HQ.

gnode 8y ago

They can't force Facebook to provide any service, but they can present them with an ultimatum: decouple use of the platform from consent for use of personal data for tracking, don't offer said service, or pay a fine.