Commission

Stung by criticism of tardy privacy investigations and the Irish privacy regulator's outsized role in overseeing Big Tech, the European Commission on Tuesday announced new rules to help watchdogs work on cross-border cases at a faster clip.Critics say investigations take too long and fines are too low to deter privacy breaches by Big Tech companies, undermining the goal of landmark EU rules known as the General Data Protection Regulation which came into force in 2018. The Irish Data Protection Commissioner (DPC), the EU…

The wheels of government have finally begun to turn on the issue of generative AI regulation. US Representatives Ted Lieu (D-CA) and Ken Buck (R-CO) introduced legislation on Monday that would establish a 20-person commission to study ways to “mitigate the risks and possible harms” of AI while “protecting” America's position as a global technology power.  The bill would require the Executive branch to appoint experts from throughout government, academia and industry to conduct the study over the course of two years,…

The European Commission will unveil on Tuesday possible measures, such as screening of outbound investments and export controls, to keep prized EU technology from countries such as China and prevent it being put to military use by rivals.The European Union executive will present its Economic Security Strategy as a "communication" to EU lawmakers and countries, whose leaders are set to discuss relations with China in Brussels next week. While not a formal legislative proposal, the communication will lay out strategies the…

Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. responded to the European Commission's…

The June gloom hung heavy along the empty shore of Escondido Beach last week, where not a soul was in sight save for a lone surfer skimming the distant waves.The sandy stretch has long been a haven for intrepid Malibu beachgoers, sandwiched as it is between Geoffrey’s Restaurant to the east and Paradise Cove to the west, with no other entry points nearby.But after a 40-year battle, the California Coastal Commission on Wednesday unanimously approved an agreement with two homeowners that will restore a long-obscured public…

Principal Agent Problem in the Financial Industry. Credit: Universität Regensburg (2023). DOI: 10.5283/epub.54281 As part of the study titled "The impact of commission bans on household wealth: Findings from OECD countries," a team led by Professor Steffen Sebastian, Director at the Center for Finance at the University of Regensburg, investigated the impact of commission bans on the brokerage of financial investments.…

The world’s governments have taken note of generative AI’s potential for massive disruption and are acting accordingly. European Commission (EC) industry chief Thierry Breton said Wednesday that it would work with Alphabet on a voluntary pact to establish artificial intelligence ground rules, according to Reuters. Breton met with Google CEO Sundar Pichai in Brussels to discuss the arrangement, which will include input from companies based in Europe and other regions. The EU has a history of enacting strict technology…

Another ally in Microsoft’s ongoing pledge drive The European Commission has finally returned its verdict and voted in favor of the proposed purchase of Activision Blizzard by publisher Microsoft. The EU Commission has been debating the near $69 billion merger for months, but has ultimately decided not to stand in Microsoft’s way. The EU Commission’s report notes that it does not consider the proposed purchase will damage the market for any particular publisher or platform, and while the commission did suggest that…

Microsoft’s move to acquire Activision was approved Monday by the European Commission, confirming a report on the deal first published last week. The European Commission confirmed it would conditionally allow Microsoft to go through with its intended purchase of Activision on the basis that the Redmond-based tech giant honors a set of commitments. As stated in the report, the 10-year commitments include providing “a free license to consumers in the EEA that would allow them to stream, via any cloud game…

US chipmaker Broadcom will try to convince EU antitrust enforcers that its proposed $61 billion bid for cloud computing company VMware, which has triggered regulatory scrutiny on both sides of the Atlantic, is pro-competitive. The company will present its arguments to senior European Commission officials and their counterparts from national competition agencies as well as lawyers from the EU executive at a closed hearing. Broadcom's request for the hearing came after the Commission last month warned the deal may restrict…