What is the reality of 'digital lobbying' underway over new EU regulations?



In the EU,

strong new regulations are underway to ban major IT companies such as Google, Apple, Facebook, and Amazon from 'pre-installing only their own apps on devices.' Major IT companies are already lobbying for this move, which seems to be a major regulation since the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) , and the contents are also the spread of the Internet and measures against the new coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Politico, a news site specializing in politics, reports that it has changed to 'digital lobbying' based on the above.

Big guns and Zoom cliques: Inside Silicon Valley's digital lobbying playbook – POLITICO
https://www.politico.eu/article/europe-digital-lobbying-platforms/

According to Politico, the European Commission (EC) is in discussions aimed at enacting two major regulations: Digital Services Act (DSA) and Digital Market Act (DMA). The specific content is unknown at the time of writing the article, but it is expected to be an extremely strong regulation that will force major IT companies to split their European business and impose large fines .

Similar to the time when the GDPR was enacted, active lobbying activities are being carried out when both the DSA and DMA laws are enacted, and from around March 2020, especially face-to-face meetings will be held on the Web conferencing service Zoom and the messenger app. It is said that it is changing to 'digital lobbying activities' using WhatsApp etc.



Politico has dozens of lobbyists and EU dignitaries to uncover the reality of underwater lobbying, which has become more opaque and less visible to the public. Conducted an interview with. The following five points summarize the patterns of 'digital lobbying' that were found from the results.

・ Google leads in the number of meetings
According to a

study by Corporate Europe Observatory , a lobbying oversight body, Google's lobbyists were the most attended of the 160 meetings so far, followed by Microsoft and Facebook. I know.

・ The rise of CEO lobbyists
Thierry Breton , a French businessman who is involved in the new regulation, has stated that he is a former CEO of a large company, so 'I only talk to top executives.' As a result of this trend, large companies with abundant connections have become easier to contact with policy makers, while small companies and citizen groups are struggling.

・ Megacorporations are openly competing with each other
IT companies typically work together to lobby and maximize their influence. However, there is disagreement over the antitrust law that EC is currently reviewing, and the conflict is a large-scale platform that Microsoft has like other companies while Facebook accuses Apple of fraudulent App Store. It has surfaced in the form of proposing regulations for.

・ The main battlefield changed its location on the way
Initially, Google, Facebook and others focused on regulation of content moderation, but from the summer of 2020, they shifted their focus to competition rules for new entry into the online market.

・ One catastrophe came to light
When Google was forming a public policy team in May, an internal 'lobbying plan' aimed at weakening Mr. Breton was leaked, forcing Google to apologize to Mr. Breton. .. Two EU officials who provided information to Politico said the incident severed Google's position within the EC.


by GuillermoJM

According to Politico, discussions on DSA, which aims to increase the competitiveness of EU IT companies, have stagnated due to the impact of COVID-19. While DSA is no longer a threat to major IT companies, DMA is gaining in presence with a review of antitrust laws, which has pushed digital rights activists and nonprofits out of the loop. It seems that it has been placed.

Furthermore, as a result of COVID-19 changing face-to-face discussions to those that make full use of WhatsApp and Zoom, lobbying is becoming more dependent on lobbyists' personal connections, and the impact of COVID-19 is widespread. I'm doing it.

Regarding the reality of such 'digital lobbying,' Politico said, 'The move to rewrite the rulebook of the digital industry in Europe has created a new kind of lobbying that takes place in an almost completely virtual realm, with unprecedented tactics and factions. Was born. '

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