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Europe squares up to Big Tech, risking ire of Washington

February 18, 2026 5 min read International Relations Science & Technology GS2 (International Relations bilateral groupings) GS3 (Science and Technology digital economy)
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What Happened

  • The European Union moved ahead with aggressive enforcement of its Digital Markets Act (DMA) and Digital Services Act (DSA) in 2026, targeting major US technology companies — Apple, Google, Meta, Amazon, and Microsoft — with potential fines of up to 10% of global annual revenue for non-compliance.
  • The Trump administration escalated its response, threatening retaliatory tariffs on European exports if enforcement continued, and the US Department of State took the unprecedented step of imposing visa restrictions on five European officials involved in drafting the DMA and DSA.
  • Apple demanded that the European Commission scrap the DMA entirely; Meta complained that the commission was "handicapping successful American businesses while allowing Chinese and European companies to operate under different standards."
  • The Commission's 2026 enforcement agenda targets Google's dominance in search and advertising technology, Meta's blocking of rival AI developers on WhatsApp, and Apple's App Store restrictions.
  • The EU-US tech standoff has broader implications for the rules governing the global digital economy, with Brazil, South Korea, Japan, India, and the UK all considering or implementing similar regulatory frameworks inspired by the EU model.

Static Topic Bridges

The EU Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act

The Digital Markets Act (DMA) and Digital Services Act (DSA) are the two pillars of the EU's comprehensive digital regulatory framework, both adopted in 2022 and progressively entering force from 2024 onwards.

  • Digital Markets Act (DMA): Targets "gatekeeper" platforms — very large online platforms with significant market power — designated by the European Commission. Gatekeepers (currently Apple, Google, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, ByteDance) must ensure interoperability, allow third-party app stores, share data with business users, and refrain from self-preferencing. Fines: up to 10% of global annual turnover; up to 20% for repeat violations; and structural remedies (break-up) for systemic violations.
  • Digital Services Act (DSA): Governs content moderation, algorithmic transparency, and online safety for platforms. Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) with over 45 million EU users must conduct risk assessments, allow algorithm auditing, and give users control over recommendation algorithms. Fines: up to 6% of global annual turnover.
  • The DMA represents "ex ante" regulation — preventing harmful conduct before it occurs, rather than the traditional "ex post" competition law approach of punishing past behaviour after lengthy investigations.

Connection to this news: The EU's willingness to impose substantial fines on US tech giants — and the US government's escalatory response with visa sanctions — signals that digital regulation has become a front in the broader US-EU trade and geopolitical relationship.

Antitrust Law and Platform Regulation

Competition law (antitrust law) is the branch of law that prevents anti-competitive practices by dominant firms. Traditional antitrust tools — merger review, abuse of dominance proceedings — have proven slow and inadequate for fast-moving digital markets, driving the EU to adopt ex ante sector-specific regulation through the DMA.

  • Classical antitrust principles (derived from Sherman Act in the US, Article 101/102 TFEU in the EU) address anti-competitive agreements and abuse of dominant position, but require lengthy case-by-case investigation that cannot keep pace with digital market dynamics.
  • The EU's 2004 ruling against Microsoft (bundling Windows Media Player) and 2018 ruling against Google Shopping ($2.7 billion fine) were landmark antitrust cases but took years to resolve and produced limited market change.
  • The DMA's "gatekeeper" designation creates a presumptive obligation of compliance for designated firms — inverting the traditional investigative burden — and is specifically designed to address self-preferencing, data silos, and walled-garden ecosystems.
  • India's Competition Commission of India (CCI) has issued orders against Google (2022, ₹2,274 crore fine for abuse of dominance in Android market), Amazon, and others, drawing on competition law but also considering DMA-style sectoral regulation under the proposed Digital Competition Bill.

Connection to this news: India's evolving digital competition framework, including the Digital Competition Bill currently under consideration, is directly informed by the EU's DMA model — making the EU-US regulatory standoff a reference point for India's own platform regulation policy.

India's Digital Economy and Regulatory Approach

India is home to one of the world's largest and fastest-growing digital markets, with over 900 million internet users and a thriving digital payments and e-commerce ecosystem. India's regulatory approach to big tech has been assertive but distinct from the EU's legislative model.

  • India's e-commerce FDI policy prohibits marketplace platforms (Amazon, Flipkart) from selling products of affiliated entities or their vendors where the platform holds equity, and from mandating exclusive listings — addressing self-preferencing concerns through sectoral policy rather than general competition law.
  • The CCI's 2022 orders against Google (two separate cases, total fines ₹2,274 crore) on the Android OS bundling and Play Store billing system were landmark; Google appealed but was required to implement interim modifications.
  • India's proposed Digital Competition Bill (DCoB) would designate "Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises" (SSDEs) with ex ante obligations similar to the EU DMA — indicating a convergence toward the EU model.
  • The IT Rules 2021 and subsequent amendments require significant social media intermediaries to appoint local compliance officers, grieve officers, and comply with government takedown orders within tight time windows.
  • India's Data Protection Board (under the DPDPA 2023) and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) together constitute the emerging institutional architecture for digital regulation.

Connection to this news: As the EU-US standoff escalates, India has the opportunity to position itself as a pragmatic third path — learning from EU enforcement experience while maintaining investment attractiveness for both US and European tech companies in its large market.

Key Facts & Data

  • DMA fines: up to 10% of global annual turnover; 20% for repeat violations.
  • DSA fines: up to 6% of global annual turnover.
  • EU gatekeeper platforms designated: Apple, Google, Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, ByteDance.
  • US State Department action: visa restrictions on 5 EU officials involved in drafting DMA/DSA.
  • CCI fine on Google (India, 2022): ₹2,274 crore across two orders.
  • India's Digital Competition Bill: under consideration; proposes designation of "Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises."
  • EU internet users: ~450 million; threshold for VLOP status under DSA: 45 million EU users.
  • India's internet users: approximately 900+ million.
  • Brazil: introduced comprehensive digital markets legislation in September 2025, citing EU model.