Antitrust enforcement gets some political framing in the European Parliament. — Google AdTech behaviour hurt publishers; this hurt media, journalism & ultimately democracy — antitrust is about combatting unfair power & ensuring citizens are protected —Europe is urged to stand up to Trump

Whenever there is an outage or supply disturbance like #AWS today, it triggers familiar scraps over #resilience. Sometimes, that means big, strong (European) companies able to compete globally. Today, that means not being dependent on a single provider who can make half the internet fall over.

Mega test of EU approach to industrial policy coming up. 3 big French telcos are jointly bidding to buy the 4th. EU has historically blocked 4-to-3 consolidation as it raises prices. But the mood has shifted of late, eg Draghi saying mergers could be OK. One to watch. www.lemonde.fr/economie/art...

One for the people of Europe. Or at least those who dress well. @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu and @ec.europa.eu have fined Gucci, Chloe and Loewe a total of 157 million euros for using resale polciies that restrcted independent sellers. Keep pricies high. No discounts. Specified sales periods.

Nobel Laureates on innovation being crucial for competitiveness. Dealing back on competition policies, it’s an important part of our work when updating our merger guidelines to better take into account innovation and the appearance of new innovative firms.

For context, there is a renewed push by European companies and some governments to soften the M&A rules. But EU competition boss @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu is calling it out. The framing is interesting: for here, it’s about protecting values, social-market, democracy.

One of the greats no longer with us. RIP Ivan Klima. www.theguardian.com/books/2025/o...

Our traditional annual conversation with three leading voices in EU journalism on digital competition policy: Samuel Stolton, Lewis Crofts and Javier Espinoza. Really honest, easygoing, and insightful answers, occasionally provocative, addressing Europe’s digital markets. ▶️ lnkd.in/eCQTYCQc

Does the EU pick on American tech companies? The White House says yes. Today, EU opens probe into German software giant #SAP ec.europa.eu/commission/p...

Just to bring you up to date: Apple says DMA is bad for consumers techxplore.com/news/2025-09... Consumer organisation says DMA is good for consumers www.beuc.eu/news/digital...

Bloomberg TV & radio host @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu for an interview covering topics: EU/US adtech probes; Nvidia's dominance; EU-US trade deal; US government's stake in Intel. www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/...

If you’re looking for a snappy summary of @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu vision for competition policy, look here: “More than economics, it’s about democracy.”

Quite some talk about the EU review of the merger guidelines today. (NB this is the policy document about what mergers to approve). @vonderleyen.ec.europa.eu said this morning they should be accelerated from the 2027 timeline. @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu said a draft will appear spring next year

The last week has seen both sides of @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu approach to competition enforcement. The “hard” side: Google gets fined nearly 3pm. The “soft” side: Microsoft avoids a fine by changing its Teams software. This’ll be a helpful counterpoint in debates of US tech regulation.

BOOM. After a turbulent week, @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu weilds the power of the EU's #antitrust rulebook: 2.95 billion fine on Google for adtech abuse. After the Monday drama of the fine being opposed and delayed, it's a very bold move to hit Google hard. But there was much at stake.

EU was scheduled to release a fine against Google. It was pulled at the last minute due to EU-US trade tensions. Great scoop from MLex.

EU must be prepared to walk away from trade deal if US retaliates over tech laws, @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu tells the FT www.ft.com/content/010c...

I doubt this is what EU/UK officials were expecting to read from Trump. As the trade deals bed in and everyone exhales... Trump renews his opprobrium: foreign tech laws against US companies will be met with retaliation. www.ft.com/content/ff8d...

Just went you thought it was safe to go outside... or maybe go and gamble some of your EU salary in Vegas... you better cancel that trip.

Jonathan Kanter, former top #antitrust cop at the US DOJ, warns in the @financialtimes.com about the risk of "aqui-hires," by the likes of Google, Microsoft and Meta, where they pick-up startups (often AI) to absorb their staff, in a way that avoids regulatory scrutiny. www.ft.com/content/1d70...

End of an era in US. Trump revokes Biden's 2021 executive order which promoted an "all economy" approach for competition. DOJ welcomed the move saying it wanted to unleash the power of business, not give more power to regulators. Amercia First Antitrust. www.washingtontimes.com/news/2025/au...

A powerful tool, still in its infancy. Commissioners @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu & Sejourne launch a consultation ahead of a report next year. One of the many steps to see how this new law can be refined. Questions about admin burden & legal approach. ec.europa.eu/commission/p...

Thanks for the reminder @janemunday.bsky.social. Every summer, I repost this article DROWNING DOES NOT LOOK LIKE DROWNING. To date, I know of FOUR kids who were saved after someone who'd clicked on the link learnt how to spot actual drowning. Take time to read and pass on. slate.com/technology/2...

As the tennis season gathers pace, a reminder that there is an almighty #antitrust fight going on between players and governing bodies. The lawsuit though has been narrowed down a little. www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/202...

After a quiet time on the M&A front, the @ec.europa.eu & @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu make a significant move. A new in-depth probe into the tieup Mars & Kellanova. Together, they make loads of household food (think: chocolate, biscuits, crisps, cereal). /1 ec.europa.eu/commission/p...

EU has set out its stall for subsidizing the green transition. In a new state aid framework @teresaribera.ec.europa.eu is trying to direct public funds to producing clean tech & helping rollout of renewables. The major sweetener: allowing energy intensive sectors relief from high electricty costs.

Mark Zuckerberg of Meta making his plea to Donald Trump for the US to defend its tech companies in the face fo EU regulatory intervention. Tim Cook of Apple had made a similar plea in October. List from about 21st minute www.youtube.com/watch?v=7k1e...

It's hard to describe just how dull the Merkel memoirs are.

Right, let's test out the "network effects" doctrine...