Regulating the Internet is not easy. And it shouldn’t be that way. As with any industry, the Internet is vast and no one solution can solve all problems. However, regulation is necessary for the industry to not only continue to grow, but also to benefit consumers.
Internet regulations in the United States are said to be old and outdated, but this is not the case globally. Most notably, the European Union is working on new internet regulations to govern the growing technology industry. Although the US cannot imitate all of her EU regulations due to inconsistencies in their respective legal systems, it provides an insightful case study of how effective internet regulation can be. Given this, the United States should closely monitor recent technology regulations and litigation in the EU to inform its own policy.
Historically, the United States’ relationship with Internet regulation has been unsatisfactory at best. Despite repeated pushes for federal internet regulation, whether it concerns youth safety or data protection, these attempts almost always fail. At the root of this inaction is a base of legislators who continue to find problems with some aspects of proposed regulations and who will never allow them to move forward in Congress. But if U.S. laws were based on actual regulations in other countries, they might be less susceptible to such widespread criticism.
Pragmatic regulation is perfectly demonstrated by the European Union, one of the world’s largest economies. The EU, unlike the US, is at the forefront of internet regulation. Among other new regulations over the past decade, the EU passed the General Data Protection Regulation. This is a law that prioritizes user privacy and security on the internet and imposes penalties on companies that are not based in the EU. Recently, the EU enacted the Digital Markets Act. This is a provision that enforces fair trade across the Internet and prevents monopolies from forming in various online markets.
These two EU laws are just some of the steps the EU has taken to regulate the internet. In addition to the recent enactment of the DMA, the EU fined Apple $2 billion for its market control over the app store and harm it caused to music streaming apps. In particular, Apple limited app sales to its own App Store and steered consumers away from cheaper streaming services to Apple’s music streaming service. The EU is forcing Apple and other companies to demonstrate their ability to adapt to tougher regulations by imposing hefty fines on them for antitrust violations. Laws and fines subsequently implemented by the EU proved to other countries that these companies could indeed be regulated.
In the latest move, the US Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Apple for allegedly monopolizing the mobile phone market. It remains to be seen who will prevail in court. This new case is a microcosm of broader questions about the extent to which Big Tech can be regulated in the U.S. legal system.
Regulation may be effective in unions without a large company, but how does the situation change when a large company is headquartered in the same location as the regulated entity? Companies such as Apple, Google, and Meta all operate in the United States, making it the second, fifth, and seventh most valuable company in the world, making it an integral part of the American economy. Unlike the EU, US internet regulations affect the internet and It is an area that is difficult to regulate easily because of its impact on the economy. However, this in no way means that the US should ignore the successful internet regulations enacted by her EU.
EU internet regulation is not a strictly one-to-one blueprint. The United States should adapt simply because it works. Rather, they demonstrate that certain regulations can work beyond theory, and that is a powerful thing. When GDPR and DMA succeeded by preventing millions of people from losing their data to companies that sell it for profit and making it fairer for small and medium-sized businesses that use the internet , the United States and its officials will demonstrate domestic adaptation. These regulations are doable.
It is difficult to get regulations completely right the first time. But if a coalition of nearly 500 million people can prove that internet regulation works, the United States shouldn’t ignore it. As the United States continues its endless battle to enact new internet regulations, looking to the EU may provide the evidence needed to show that much internet regulation is more achievable than it seems. unknown.
Thomas Muha is an opinion columnist who writes about legal and economic issues facing technology and the Internet. He can be reached at tmuha@umich.edu or he can be reached at @TJMooUM on X.
