Europe Takes on Tech Giants

By The Economist Editorial Board

The Economist
March 23, 2019

Eileen Boyle
Mr. O’Grady
Contemporary World Issues
 Although America oftentimes seems like the center of the universe, prosperity and

innovation extend beyond its red, white, and blue borders. For years it has been the pinnacle of

new technology, as inventions as important as the lightbulb and even as convenient as the

Roomba have been born from American minds. However, the “Old World” is not as far behind

as they are made out to be. Europe having 1 large technology firm compared to America’s 15 is a

statistic that makes it seem unlikely, but Europe handles Big Tech with much more care than

America does. The European Union has been standing firm in the rights of the individual under

the pressures of technology corporations, meanwhile American politicians are still caught in the

struggle of privacy and who should create those regulations.

Europe has forced tech companies to take the great responsibility that comes with their

great power by forcing them to own up to their attempts at monopoly, their lapses in user

security, and their other faults. Europe being able to make these moves easily without bringing

forth an argument of whether or not people should have a right to their own privacy makes me

question why Americans cannot seem to do the same. Europe is taking the right steps by

controlling how much these companies can take hold of, and it’s creating an environment that

won’t drown out small companies. It does this by fining giant corporations such as Google when

they overstep boundaries by having a chokehold on advertising. Even just taking steps against

such prominent companies such as Google sets a precedent so (hopefully) other companies will

not overstep the same boundaries. Strides to create level ground for producers and consumers,

and companies large and small makes the corporate Internet a safer place for everyone.