Amid reports that the EU is considering watering down a signature tech-competition law as part of a tariff deal with the US, the bloc's top competition official has stated that bartering with the EU's antitrust laws is off the table.
"Of course not," Teresa Ribera said in an interview with Bloomberg TV when asked whether changes to the Digital Markets Act (DMA) are part of EU-US tariff negotiations. "We do not challenge the US on how they adopt regulations. I think we deserve respect in the same way."
Her comments come amid speculation that the EU, which had so far been resolute in its refusal to negotiate its tech laws despite intense pressure from the US, had changed course. A week ago, the Wall Street Journal reported that a draft "agreement on reciprocal trade" had been circulated by the US Trade Representative's office.
While the text reportedly did not address US President Donald Trump's tariffs specifically, it touched on long-standing pressure points between the US and the EU, such as the DMA, carbon-based border tariffs, shipbuilding measures and more. The draft suggests that both parties would enter into a dialogue over the DMA and work to exempt US companies.
The DMA only applies to 'gatekeeper' companies, which the EU defines as "large digital platforms providing any of a pre-defined set of digital services". A company's economic position, intermediary power and longevity in the market all factor into whether it is deemed a gatekeeper. Out of the seven gatekeeper companies, five of these are American, meaning that an exemption for US companies would essentially neutralise the regulation.
The EU currently has multiple open investigations, most of them having to do with antitrust practices, against Apple, Meta and Google. It recently fined Apple €500m ($585m) and €200m for antitrust breaches, risking provoking a US response.
Time is running out for the EU to reach a tariff deal as the deadline for Trump's 90-day extension of his 'reciprocal' tariffs looms on 9 July. If the two sides don't reach a deal, tariffs on almost all EU exports would rise to 50%.
At the time of writing, European leaders are considering whether to accept a quick trade agreement with the US that is more favourable to Washington, or hold off in the hope of a better deal, Reuters reported.
