Let's hit Trump's Tech Bros with that EU Digital Services Tax finally

After all the build-up, the transatlantic trade war has truly begun.

US tariffs on steel are reciprocated with EU tariffs on jeans and Harley Davidsons. When announcing the EU tariffs president Ursula von der Leyen was clear that she is open to dialogue with the Americans to deescalate the trade conflict. 

We have seen in his modus operandi that this is how Donald Trump likes to operate. Bold statements and excessive tariffs to extort trading partners and get a better deal. He has been doing it to Mexico, Canada and Ukraine, and will do so to Europe.

However, in exchange for what?

This is the reason why the EU and the European Commission have to be prepared for a targeted push of the American administration to weaken the digital rules that protect our citizens online.

Big Tech CEOs like Meta´s Zuckerberg have signalled to expect this to happen. Add to that the interference of Elon Musk on the German election and the speech of vice president JD Vance at the Munich Security Conference criticising the actions taken by the EU to counter disinformation. 

That is why we urge von der Leyen and EU tech sovereignty commissioner Henna Virkkunen to stay firm and defend the European digital acquis from the rising pressure. Together with more than 30 members of the progressive groups in the European Parliament, we sent a letter in support of enforcing the existing rules. 

DSA and DMA already under review?

The announced Digital Package on simplification of recent EU digital rules for later this year is sending a wrong signal to the Americans. We should be extremely cautious when reviewing legislation, such as the Digital Services Act (DSA), and the Digital Markets Act (DMA), that were only adopted in the previous legislative term and are recently coming into force.

It is even more astonishing and confusing to announce reviewing the AI Act considering that it is not fully applicable yet. 

Moreover, the commission has not even completed the first set of investigations in the breach of these new laws.

This shows that it is too soon to evaluate their effects. Swift enforcement is needed, still we hear signals that there is pressure to delay the conclusions on the probes into Meta, X and others. 

It is highly dangerous to reopen the debate on these rules that currently are, and will remain under, immense pressure from Big Tech CEOs and the Trump administration. Not only tech sovereignty is at stake, but also the reputation of the EU as a standard-setter for regulating technology.

Virkkunen cancelled

Virkkunen was supposed to travel to Washington this week, but the trip was cancelled at the last minute.

Maybe this is a good sign showing that the commission is aware that potentially mixing tech diplomacy with trade discussions is not a good idea.  

In this regard, Europe should realise there is only one thing that Trump and his friends understand. It is force and strength. It is having the right set of cards and playing them out. We should not give away anything of our position, by offering them on a silver platter to water down the rules we democratically created. We should instead put new things on the table, new cards to play. 

For one, an EU Digital Services Tax, for which the commission proposed a Directive in 2018 and at the time blocked by several member states, can be reintroduced in the new geopolitical context.

A targeted levy that will not harm consumers, but aims directly at the excessive profits of tech billionaires supporting Trump.

Another option is to introduce an EU-wide ban of very large online platforms that do not abide by the EU digital rules.

If Big Tech is willingly ignoring our rules, fines might not be enough of a deterrent. We have seen successful examples of Brazilian courts dealing with X and Musk, by forcing his hand with a ban. 

We cannot underestimate the disruptive effect and importance of the digital transformation for Europe and our citizens. In our rule of law, the co-legislator carefully constructed a legal framework to make sure that we are clear about what is illegal online. Carelessly deconstructing this framework is creating legal uncertainty and discrediting the values of the EU. 

Only by taking the offensive, we can defend our rules and prevent them ending up as a bargaining chip in this cynical geopolitical game.