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The State Department and White House will likely intervene when the EU wants to start using fines as a revenue stream. Google has been historically targeted by

The State Department and White House will likely intervene when the EU wants to start using fines as a revenue stream. Google has been historically targeted by individuals in high ranking roles at the EU who have gone on record calling it their personal mission to harm US tech firms. There is a limit.

ls15 4y ago
Volkswagen paid much more for Dieselgate in the US
- DisjointedHunt 4y ago
  So . . deliberately concealing poisonous gas emissions on a scale so massive, it affected every living thing in the United States is a little different to a highly subjective interpretation of a dominant market position and an even more suspect ruling on abuse of said monopoly.
  - ls15 4y ago
    Well, the fine was higher
    - DisjointedHunt 4y ago
      You think we're arguing about the dollar amount or about the lack of legal grounds ?
tgv 4y ago
> There is a limit. And that limit is antitrust violations.
- DisjointedHunt 4y ago
  I look forward to your support of US fines on the German automobile industry and Airbus as well. Any half wit judge should be able to bless those judgements if we’re using the standard in the court ruling we’re commenting on. It’s a almost as though you think the issue here is about some actual abuse as opposed to the logical loops the judgement is diving through to push through those findings.
- pessimizer 4y ago
  The US won't be concerned about the rights or wrongs of the issue. If Google is willing to pay 25% of avoided fines to politicians, politicians will certainly be overjoyed to make Google's rights to abuse their position in the European market a personal passion. The main job of American diplomacy is securing profits all over the world for America's most generous lobbyists.
  - KptMarchewa 4y ago
    Politicians are way, way cheaper than those 25%.
- Aunche 4y ago
  And yet none of Google's competitors are in the EU, despite their stronger antitrust laws. You can actually make a case that this fine was made in good faith, but historically, their fines have been completely arbitrary. They fined Google $2.8 billion for simply adding Google Shopping to search.
LeifCarrotson 4y ago
There's a difference between harming US (international) tech firms for the sake of harming the US, and harming antitrust-law-violating, privacy-violating, human-rights-violating tech firms that happen to originate in the US. That might look like a personal vendetta against Google, but it's not personal at all. It's much like the way the head of the US FTC has a bone to pick with Amazon, not because she has anything personal with Amazon, but because she's charged with protecting consumers and believes Amazon to be harming them. Just because they're able to get away with it here due to the corruption in American campaign finance doesn't mean they can get away with it everywhere.
LunaSea 4y ago
That's fine, the US has been doing exactly this for at least the last 10 years against EU corporations. Time to walk the talk.
rsynnott 4y ago
With what reciprocity? EU-based firms being immune to FTC enforcement in their US operations? Both the US and EU have a fairly strong interest in the principle that transnational companies can be regulated by national regulators, _particularly_ antitrust regulators. Undermining this would tend to lead to a situation where these companies couldn't be effectively regulated by _anyone_.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
buran77 4y ago
And they have in the past with a mix of stick and carrot. The US tries to protect its companies despite knowing they're in the wrong, the EU does the same. What changed is that even the US regulators and politicians grew weary of big-tech's abuses and the fact they have so much power they're getting to be too big to control.
ClumsyPilot 4y ago
Every time there is a discussion of EU regulating an American firm for anything, a comment like this appears. I am really puzzled, what is the cause for this blatant nationalism - as an American you will never see any of this money, it's probably headed for a tax heaven. The hypocracy is blatant too, USA regulates every business on it's soil without hesitation, often with asine laws like the Jones act. When France introduced 3% tax on tech giants, US government lost their shit. They can set 100% tax if they please, if you don't like it, don't trade in France. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48947922 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48947922 I think US State Department is quite aware that EU is one of the few institutions that is roughly their peer in economy and trade wat capability. They don't want to kick a hornets nest.
- DisjointedHunt 4y ago
  Well, it’s not “anything” now, is it? The specific findings of the commission and the court here go against any reasonable logic. The EU seems to love kicking US tech firms while staying silent on anything China does. Ask German businesses who moved manufacturing to China and had their Intellectual property stolen from right in front of their eyes, only to have the EU play pussycat then. Your comment could certainly use a bit more thought.
- pyrale 4y ago
  > Every time there is a discussion of EU regulating an American firm for anything, a comment like this appears. The united fruit mentality never really ended.

ls15 4y ago

Volkswagen paid much more for Dieselgate in the US

DisjointedHunt 4y ago
So . . deliberately concealing poisonous gas emissions on a scale so massive, it affected every living thing in the United States is a little different to a highly subjective interpretation of a dominant market position and an even more suspect ruling on abuse of said monopoly.
- ls15 4y ago
  Well, the fine was higher
  - DisjointedHunt 4y ago
    You think we're arguing about the dollar amount or about the lack of legal grounds ?

tgv 4y ago

> There is a limit. And that limit is antitrust violations.

DisjointedHunt 4y ago
I look forward to your support of US fines on the German automobile industry and Airbus as well. Any half wit judge should be able to bless those judgements if we’re using the standard in the court ruling we’re commenting on. It’s a almost as though you think the issue here is about some actual abuse as opposed to the logical loops the judgement is diving through to push through those findings.
pessimizer 4y ago
The US won't be concerned about the rights or wrongs of the issue. If Google is willing to pay 25% of avoided fines to politicians, politicians will certainly be overjoyed to make Google's rights to abuse their position in the European market a personal passion. The main job of American diplomacy is securing profits all over the world for America's most generous lobbyists.
- KptMarchewa 4y ago
  Politicians are way, way cheaper than those 25%.
Aunche 4y ago
And yet none of Google's competitors are in the EU, despite their stronger antitrust laws. You can actually make a case that this fine was made in good faith, but historically, their fines have been completely arbitrary. They fined Google $2.8 billion for simply adding Google Shopping to search.

LeifCarrotson 4y ago

There's a difference between harming US (international) tech firms for the sake of harming the US, and harming antitrust-law-violating, privacy-violating, human-rights-violating tech firms that happen to originate in the US. That might look like a personal vendetta against Google, but it's not personal at all. It's much like the way the head of the US FTC has a bone to pick with Amazon, not because she has anything personal with Amazon, but because she's charged with protecting consumers and believes Amazon to be harming them. Just because they're able to get away with it here due to the corruption in American campaign finance doesn't mean they can get away with it everywhere.

LunaSea 4y ago

That's fine, the US has been doing exactly this for at least the last 10 years against EU corporations. Time to walk the talk.

rsynnott 4y ago

With what reciprocity? EU-based firms being immune to FTC enforcement in their US operations? Both the US and EU have a fairly strong interest in the principle that transnational companies can be regulated by national regulators, _particularly_ antitrust regulators. Undermining this would tend to lead to a situation where these companies couldn't be effectively regulated by _anyone_.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]

buran77 4y ago

And they have in the past with a mix of stick and carrot. The US tries to protect its companies despite knowing they're in the wrong, the EU does the same. What changed is that even the US regulators and politicians grew weary of big-tech's abuses and the fact they have so much power they're getting to be too big to control.

ClumsyPilot 4y ago

Every time there is a discussion of EU regulating an American firm for anything, a comment like this appears. I am really puzzled, what is the cause for this blatant nationalism - as an American you will never see any of this money, it's probably headed for a tax heaven. The hypocracy is blatant too, USA regulates every business on it's soil without hesitation, often with asine laws like the Jones act. When France introduced 3% tax on tech giants, US government lost their shit. They can set 100% tax if they please, if you don't like it, don't trade in France. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48947922 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-48947922 I think US State Department is quite aware that EU is one of the few institutions that is roughly their peer in economy and trade wat capability. They don't want to kick a hornets nest.

DisjointedHunt 4y ago
Well, it’s not “anything” now, is it? The specific findings of the commission and the court here go against any reasonable logic. The EU seems to love kicking US tech firms while staying silent on anything China does. Ask German businesses who moved manufacturing to China and had their Intellectual property stolen from right in front of their eyes, only to have the EU play pussycat then. Your comment could certainly use a bit more thought.
pyrale 4y ago
> Every time there is a discussion of EU regulating an American firm for anything, a comment like this appears. The united fruit mentality never really ended.