BRUSSELS: The EU on Tuesday unveiled tough draft rules targeting tech giants such as Google, Amazon and Facebook, whose power Brussels sees as a threat to competition and even democracy.
The landmark proposals, which come as Silicon Valley faces increasing global scrutiny, could shake up the way Big Tech does business by menacing some of the world’s biggest firms with mammoth fines or bans from the European market.
EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager said the bloc’s draft laws to regulate the internet aimed to bring “order to chaos” and rein in the online “gatekeepers” that dominate the market.
“The Digital Service Act and Digital Markets Act will create safe and trustworthy services while protecting freedom of expression,” she told a press conference.
The EU says the legislation would see internet behemoths face fines of up to 10 percent of their turnover for breaking some of the most serious competition rules, or even risk being broken up.
It also proposes fining them 6 percent of revenues or temporarily banning them from the EU market “in the event of serious and repeated breaches of law which endanger the security of European citizens.”
The Digital Services Act and its accompanying Digital Markets Act will lay out strict conditions for doing business in the EU’s 27 member countries as authorities aim to curb the spread of disinformation and hate speech online, as well as Big Tech’s business dominance.
A source close to the European Commission said 10 firms face being designated as “gatekeepers” under the competition legislation and subject to specific regulations to limit their power to dominate markets.
The firms that would be subject to stricter regulation are US titans Facebook, Google, Amazon, Apple, Microsoft and SnapChat, China’s Alibaba and Bytedance, South Korea’s Samsung and the Netherlands’ Booking.com.
Search engine Google said it will carefully study the proposals, but complained that they “seem to specifically target a handful of companies.”
The draft laws will go through a long and complex ratification process, with the EU’s 27 states, the European Parliament, and a lobbying frenzy of companies and trade associations influencing the final law.
The Digital Services Act is being touted as a way to give the European Commission sharper teeth in pursuing social media platforms when they allow illegal content online, such as extremist propaganda, hate speech, disinformation and child pornography.
Under the Digital Markets Act, the EU is seeking to give Brussels new powers to enforce competition laws more quickly, and to push for greater transparency in their algorithms and use of personal data.
The rules are designed to update legislation that dates back to 2004, when many of today’s internet giants either did not exist or were in their infancy.
A Facebook spokesperson said the proposed regulations “are on the right track to help preserve what is good about the internet,” and insisted it looks forward “to engaging with EU lawmakers.”
The social network took aim at fellow tech giant Apple, insisting it wants the rules to “set boundaries” for the iPhone maker, with which it has tussled over privacy.
Activist group Avaaz said the legislation could prove a “bold and brave move,” but insisted Brussels must make sure it is fully enforced.
“This is a strong framework and the EU has the heft and democratic values to hold the platforms to account, regulate the reach of disinformation and protect the free speech of the users,” legal director Sarah Andrew said.
European Parliament member David Cormand, who sits on its internal market committee, said the legislation is a “step in the right direction” but lacks the ambition to “regain power over our digital services.”
For the past decade the EU has taken the lead worldwide in trying to grapple with the power of Big Tech, for example slapping billions in antitrust fines on Google, but critics believe the method has been too cumbersome and has done little to change behavior.
The EU has also ordered Apple to pay billions of euros in back taxes to Ireland, but that decision was quashed by the bloc’s highest court.
Tuesday’s moves in Brussels come as regulators around the world have increasingly become concerned about the financial and social power of Big Tech.
US authorities have taken up the call, with several major antitrust cases targeting Google in addition to a legal bid to strip Facebook of its Instagram and WhatsApp products.
Britain’s government was on Tuesday also expected to announce proposed legislation to tackle “online harms” by introducing the threat of fines for internet giants.
EU unveils new rules to curb tech giants
https://arab.news/mtp69
EU unveils new rules to curb tech giants
- The EU outlined its long-awaited sweeping overhaul of digital regulations
GCC growth set to accelerate to 4.4% in 2026 on non-oil strength: World Bank
RIYADH: Economies across the Gulf Cooperation Council are forecast to grow 4.4 percent in 2026, accelerating to 4.6 percent in 2027, driven by rising non-oil activity in countries including Saudi Arabia, according to an analysis.
In its Global Economic Prospects report, the World Bank said the Kingdom’s real gross domestic product is projected to grow 4.3 percent in 2026 and 4.4 percent in 2027, up from an expected 3.8 percent in 2025.
Earlier this month, a separate analysis by Standard Chartered echoed similar expectations, forecasting the Kingdom’s GDP to expand by 4.5 percent in 2026, outperforming the projected global growth average of 3.4 percent, supported by momentum in both hydrocarbon and non-oil sectors.
The World Bank’s latest forecast broadly aligns with the International Monetary Fund’s October outlook, which projects Saudi Arabia’s GDP to grow by about 4 percent in both 2025 and 2026.
In its latest report, the World Bank said: “Growth in GCC countries is forecast to increase to 4.4 percent in 2026 and 4.6 percent in 2027, mainly reflecting a steady expansion of non-hydrocarbon activity, in addition to a further rise in hydrocarbon production.”
It added: “The strengthening of non-hydrocarbon activity — accounting for more than 60 percent of GCC countries’ total GDP — is projected to be supported by expected large-scale investments, including in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.”
Expanding the non-oil sector remains a core objective of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 agenda, as the Kingdom continues efforts to reduce its long-standing reliance on crude revenues.
Highlighting the strength of Saudi Arabia’s non-oil momentum, S&P Global said the Kingdom recorded the highest purchasing managers’ index reading in the region in December, at 57.4, supported by rising new orders, continued growth in non-energy business activity, and expanding employment.
At the country level, the UAE’s economy is projected to grow by 5 percent in 2026, before accelerating to 5.1 percent in 2027.
Oman’s GDP is forecast to expand by 3.6 percent in 2026 and 4 percent in 2027, while Qatar is expected to record growth of 5.3 percent next year, rising sharply to 6.8 percent in 2027.
In Kuwait and Bahrain, GDP growth is projected at 2.6 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively, in 2026.
Across the broader Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan region, growth is estimated to have reached 3.1 percent in 2025 and is projected to strengthen further to 3.6 percent in 2026 and 3.9 percent in 2027, largely driven by improving performance among oil-exporting economies.
Potential growth challenges
The World Bank also outlined several downside risks that could weigh on economic growth across the region.
These include a re-escalation of armed conflicts, heightened violence or social unrest, which could disrupt economic activity and weaken confidence.
Other risks include tighter global financial conditions, further increases in trade restrictions and tensions, greater uncertainty over global trade policies, and more frequent or severe natural disasters.
For oil exporters, lower-than-expected oil prices or heightened price volatility could also dampen growth.
“A re-escalation of armed conflicts in the region could cause a significant deterioration in consumer and business sentiment, not only in the economies directly affected but also in neighboring economies,” the World Bank said.
It added: “It could spill over into a broader increase in policy uncertainty and a tightening of financial conditions, dampening investment and economic activity.”
Global outlook
The World Bank said the global economy has proved more resilient than expected despite last year’s escalation in trade tensions and policy uncertainty.
Global economic growth is projected at 2.6 percent in 2026, easing from an estimated 2.7 percent in 2025.
“The modest slowdown comes on the heels of a post-pandemic rebound over 2021–25 that represented the strongest recovery from a global recession in more than six decades,” the World Bank said, adding that the rebound was uneven and came at the cost of higher inflation and rising debt.
Among advanced economies, US GDP is projected to grow by 1.6 percent in both 2026 and 2027.
China’s economy is expected to expand by 4.4 percent in 2026 before slowing to 4.2 percent in 2027, while India’s GDP is forecast to grow by 6.5 percent and 6.6 percent over the same period.
