Founder of the company behind it, Proton ProtonMail When ProtonVPNCriticizes the EU’s latest attempts to curb the power of Big Tech.
In an exclusive interview with TechRadar ProAndy Yen described the proposed Digital Markets Act (DMA) as “not only bringing great benefits to society, but also missing out on opportunities.”
“The EU wasn’t advanced enough. This is a big problem because it’s a once-in-a-generation type of law,” he said.
Default power
DMA will soon be enacted in EU law that seeks to limit the power of so-called “technology gatekeepers” such as Apple, Meta and Google, who have been accused of using their market position and abundant resources. It is part of the expected law. To squeeze out small competitors.
The vicious grips these companies have on different platforms and product types are said to limit the potential of companies like Proton to provide privacy-centric services. Email, VPN, Cloud storage When calendar The service pulls a large number of users away from the US tech giant.
According to the yen, DMA has a positive effect on the availability of alternative services, but the EU has made the serious mistake of failing to address the ability of platform operators to “self-prioritize” their own services.
In reality, the vast majority of users do not switch from the default, regardless of the range of choices available. In effect, this means that companies competing in the same category as the largest tech companies are unlikely to make a real foray, regardless of the quality of service.
“If antitrust doesn’t deal with defaults, it only deals with 5% of the problems. It’s really an elephant in the room,” Yen told us.
“”[On Android], Email connects the entire Google ecosystem, but DMA does not prohibit Google from prioritizing Gmail. If you don’t work on that part, you won’t break the monopoly. “
New model for regulatory agencies
A key part of the problem is that regulators do not have the level of technical expertise needed to remove the complexity of the problem at hand, Yen added. Regulators also believe that the process of defining new legislation needs to be revised to keep pace with the speed of development of the technology industry.
“The way the law worked was to create one huge groundbreaking law and leave it alone for a century. But that old model moves very fast today. Not compatible with the world. “
“We need policymakers to think differently. Policies are updated every year or two, not once in a generation. We need an iterative and therefore more agile approach.”
Given the number of moving parts and the need to ratify each bill properly, he challenged the feasibility of this type of approach and suggested that it was important to keep the big picture in mind. bottom.
“It should be a matter of what is needed, not a matter of feasibility. Otherwise, your economy will be dominated by a handful of businesses,” he said. “We have obligations and obligations to legislate properly.”
An article about the full conversation between TechRadarPro and Andy Yen will be published in the coming weeks.