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One solution might be for Google to spin off its EU datacenter operations into a company incorporated outside of US jurisdiction. The Patriot Act would then no

by dpatru 15y ago

One solution might be for Google to spin off its EU datacenter operations into a company incorporated outside of US jurisdiction. The Patriot Act would then no longer apply and Google would not be force to break EU law.

arethuza 15y ago
They almost certainly have local operating companies that are wholly owned subsidiaries of the US parent company - just having a separate company isn't enough I suspect that separate ownership would also be requried.
- wisty 15y ago
  They could set up special purpose vehicles, with very clear operating rules. That way, if the US asks, Google can say that they have no control over the subsidiary.
  - omh 15y ago
    If Google US has no control over Google EU then a number of issues could arise. Does Google EU have access to Google US data? What about the code that runs everything? What about profits - why would Google EU send profits back to Google US?
    - wisty 15y ago
      It's tricky, but no trickier than their accounting system ;) Google EU has a mission to "provide Google US with data hosting, and send profits back to the mothership". They have a contract, in which Google US grants free use of any code data that Google EU needs. Google EU has a strict constitution, which prevents them from disclosing data, even if Google US wants them to. This clause in their constitution states that it cannot be changed. If that's too extreme, they could allow the information to be released, but only if cleared by some specific third party. That's just a rough idea. I'm sure Google's lawyers could come up with something much better.
omh 15y ago
Under some interpretations of the laws, Google would need to ensure that nobody under US jurisdiction has any access to the data. A full "split" would be difficult, and seemingly break a lot of the large-scale load-balancing and redundancy of Google. And what happens when a new, separate, jurisdiction arises? While it would be technically possible, I think Google are probably happier just not dealing with the more paranoid businesses that are worried about this. That's the impression I got when discussing similar issues with their sales staff.
hollerith 15y ago
Two companies competing with each other are less valuable than one company, though.

by dpatru 15y ago

arethuza 15y ago

They almost certainly have local operating companies that are wholly owned subsidiaries of the US parent company - just having a separate company isn't enough I suspect that separate ownership would also be requried.

wisty 15y ago
They could set up special purpose vehicles, with very clear operating rules. That way, if the US asks, Google can say that they have no control over the subsidiary.
- omh 15y ago
  If Google US has no control over Google EU then a number of issues could arise. Does Google EU have access to Google US data? What about the code that runs everything? What about profits - why would Google EU send profits back to Google US?
  - wisty 15y ago
    It's tricky, but no trickier than their accounting system ;) Google EU has a mission to "provide Google US with data hosting, and send profits back to the mothership". They have a contract, in which Google US grants free use of any code data that Google EU needs. Google EU has a strict constitution, which prevents them from disclosing data, even if Google US wants them to. This clause in their constitution states that it cannot be changed. If that's too extreme, they could allow the information to be released, but only if cleared by some specific third party. That's just a rough idea. I'm sure Google's lawyers could come up with something much better.

omh 15y ago

Under some interpretations of the laws, Google would need to ensure that nobody under US jurisdiction has any access to the data. A full "split" would be difficult, and seemingly break a lot of the large-scale load-balancing and redundancy of Google. And what happens when a new, separate, jurisdiction arises? While it would be technically possible, I think Google are probably happier just not dealing with the more paranoid businesses that are worried about this. That's the impression I got when discussing similar issues with their sales staff.

hollerith 15y ago

Two companies competing with each other are less valuable than one company, though.