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>I, as a European could not be happier about this, from a economic standpoint. Please, let me play you the world's smallest violin. This trope, constantly cel

>I, as a European could not be happier about this, from a economic standpoint. Please, let me play you the world's smallest violin. This trope, constantly celebrating that $CURRENT_YEAR will finally be the year of EU tech dominance over US giants, has been on repeat ever since Snowden revealed that the NSA is in bed with every major US tech company and is actively spying on EU users. And that was all the way back in 2013. Sure, the Facebook empire is crumbling now, but since 2013, we still have no EU competitors for Google, Microsoft, Apple, AWS, etc. despite this knowledge that US tech companies have no regard for privacy and that the US government is using them to spy on us.

pastacacioepepe 5y ago
The fragility of the American exceptionalism. What if we don't want FAANGs in Europe? What if it's harder for FAANGs to develop in Europe because they can't be as aggressive and careless as american corps are? Personally I don't want Europe to allow huge monopolistic corps to take over our economy. Why would we want Google, the search engine that provides ads and spies on you instead of providing good results? Why would we want Facebook/Meta, the ridicolously troubled corporation hated by pretty much everyone at this point? Why would we want Amazon, famous for exploiting it's workforce, using old wild west methods against unions, exploiting its own sellers by copying their products and selling them for less? Why would we want Microsoft and Apple and their cartel like attitudes, when we could have a different paradigm of software/hardware that goes to benefit everyone, instead of existing only as a competitive advantage to take over the market? All of this companies will do anything in their power (lecit or not) to increase their market share and avoid paying taxes. You can keep your silicon valleys and your oligocratic economy, thank you.
- ChuckNorris89 5y ago
  I'm European.
  - pastacacioepepe 5y ago
    Well I'm not really answering to you (as an individual/person), but to the concept you expressed, which is VERY american.
    - ChuckNorris89 5y ago
      I didn't express my concept, I expressed the reality that US tech companies have universally conquered Europe. If the EU would have had the ability to compete in these sectors, then we would have done it already ever since we found out in 2013 that the US is spying on us, or way before that. But nothing changed since then. Almost every EU company and government institution is using Microsoft products and all consumers use Apple, Google or Windows. Where is this EU competition here?
      - MomoXenosaga 5y ago
        The sad reality is that we have all tied ourselves to America which was considered an unsinkable bastion of Western democracy and civilization. As Europeans we should have known better: all nations rise and fall.
      - psd1 5y ago
        Linus Torvalds is Finnish and was studying in Finland when he created Linux.
        ChuckNorris89 5y ago
        So what? We were talking about companies not individuals. The Linux kernel is not a company, not a product you can buy and neither is Linus Torvalds. Plus, for the last 20+ years Linus has been working from the US while also gaining US citizenship. Case in point for US tech dominance, talent bread in Europe ends up in the US.
        CRConrad 5y ago
        Bred. But, sure, the US is acquiring European bread talent too: Sourdough, baguette, ciabatta...
- ChuckNorris89 5y ago
  > We don't want ....[x, y, z] Then why are those US tech companies so successful in the EU with no viable local competitors, if nobody wants them?
  - pastacacioepepe 5y ago
    Everybody loves drugs, nobody likes dealers
    - ChuckNorris89 5y ago
      We can agree to associate social media with drugs, but Microsoft, Apple, AWS and Google are providing consumers with many products for which we have no equivalent competitors locally.
      - ddalex 5y ago
        But there are local competitors, they just got smothered and bought up by US based corps. Why ? Because the US has a lot more money, which translates to more money for investors to dominate the economic landscape. Why does the US have more money ? Well, if I want to buy an ice cream from the US for a dollar , I first need to sell something to an American for that dollar. US banks can just mint that dollar from thin air
        ChuckNorris89 5y ago
        >? Well, if I want to buy an ice cream from the US for a dollar , I first need to sell something to an American for that dollar. US banks can just mint that dollar from thin air I don't get this argument as the reverse is also true. If the US wants to buy French cheese and wine, it needs Euros to do that and the ECB can just print Euros out of thin air.
  - the_other 5y ago
    I want to start an Apple competitor. I have a plan; it's interesting, fun and deep. But I lack skills (I'm a FED, not an OS or hardware engineer, and I've not done funding rounds and I only have cheap suits). If I exist, there's likely similar-minded folk out there. (UK here; not quite Europe any more; not my fault or choice)
- deleted 5y ago
  [deleted]
- mavhc 5y ago
  When you say We you're not talking about the 100s of millions of users each of these companies has in the EU then?

pastacacioepepe 5y ago

The fragility of the American exceptionalism. What if we don't want FAANGs in Europe? What if it's harder for FAANGs to develop in Europe because they can't be as aggressive and careless as american corps are? Personally I don't want Europe to allow huge monopolistic corps to take over our economy. Why would we want Google, the search engine that provides ads and spies on you instead of providing good results? Why would we want Facebook/Meta, the ridicolously troubled corporation hated by pretty much everyone at this point? Why would we want Amazon, famous for exploiting it's workforce, using old wild west methods against unions, exploiting its own sellers by copying their products and selling them for less? Why would we want Microsoft and Apple and their cartel like attitudes, when we could have a different paradigm of software/hardware that goes to benefit everyone, instead of existing only as a competitive advantage to take over the market? All of this companies will do anything in their power (lecit or not) to increase their market share and avoid paying taxes. You can keep your silicon valleys and your oligocratic economy, thank you.

ChuckNorris89 5y ago
I'm European.
- pastacacioepepe 5y ago
  Well I'm not really answering to you (as an individual/person), but to the concept you expressed, which is VERY american.
  - ChuckNorris89 5y ago
    I didn't express my concept, I expressed the reality that US tech companies have universally conquered Europe. If the EU would have had the ability to compete in these sectors, then we would have done it already ever since we found out in 2013 that the US is spying on us, or way before that. But nothing changed since then. Almost every EU company and government institution is using Microsoft products and all consumers use Apple, Google or Windows. Where is this EU competition here?
    - MomoXenosaga 5y ago
      The sad reality is that we have all tied ourselves to America which was considered an unsinkable bastion of Western democracy and civilization. As Europeans we should have known better: all nations rise and fall.
    - psd1 5y ago
      Linus Torvalds is Finnish and was studying in Finland when he created Linux.
      - ChuckNorris89 5y ago
        So what? We were talking about companies not individuals. The Linux kernel is not a company, not a product you can buy and neither is Linus Torvalds. Plus, for the last 20+ years Linus has been working from the US while also gaining US citizenship. Case in point for US tech dominance, talent bread in Europe ends up in the US.
        CRConrad 5y ago
        Bred. But, sure, the US is acquiring European bread talent too: Sourdough, baguette, ciabatta...
ChuckNorris89 5y ago
> We don't want ....[x, y, z] Then why are those US tech companies so successful in the EU with no viable local competitors, if nobody wants them?
- pastacacioepepe 5y ago
  Everybody loves drugs, nobody likes dealers
  - ChuckNorris89 5y ago
    We can agree to associate social media with drugs, but Microsoft, Apple, AWS and Google are providing consumers with many products for which we have no equivalent competitors locally.
    - ddalex 5y ago
      But there are local competitors, they just got smothered and bought up by US based corps. Why ? Because the US has a lot more money, which translates to more money for investors to dominate the economic landscape. Why does the US have more money ? Well, if I want to buy an ice cream from the US for a dollar , I first need to sell something to an American for that dollar. US banks can just mint that dollar from thin air
      - ChuckNorris89 5y ago
        >? Well, if I want to buy an ice cream from the US for a dollar , I first need to sell something to an American for that dollar. US banks can just mint that dollar from thin air I don't get this argument as the reverse is also true. If the US wants to buy French cheese and wine, it needs Euros to do that and the ECB can just print Euros out of thin air.
- the_other 5y ago
  I want to start an Apple competitor. I have a plan; it's interesting, fun and deep. But I lack skills (I'm a FED, not an OS or hardware engineer, and I've not done funding rounds and I only have cheap suits). If I exist, there's likely similar-minded folk out there. (UK here; not quite Europe any more; not my fault or choice)
deleted 5y ago
[deleted]
mavhc 5y ago
When you say We you're not talking about the 100s of millions of users each of these companies has in the EU then?