Tightrope Tech Policy: EU’s von der Leyen Targets Middle Ground
After passing a bevy of strict groundbreaking tech laws during her first term, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen still sees room for additional action.
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The German Christian Democrat assembled a winning coalition of European parliamentarians to capture a second five-year term, with 401 votes in favor and 284 against. Her tech policy attempts to tread a fine line to satisfy this delicate coalition.
Do not expect a regulatory pause. New measures are on tap to combat cyberbullying and what von der Leyen calls “addictive design.” The crackdown on the most prominent Silicon Valley companies will be reinforced. But von der Leyen’s priority is boosting tech to increase European competitiveness.
The balancing act starts with ramped-up enforcement of existing regulations, such as the content moderation-focused Digital Services Act and competition-oriented Digital Markets Act, so that Big Tech “assumes responsibility,” von der Leyen wrote in her campaign manifesto. Tech took up a large part of the priorities document, compared to its relative absence from previous party manifestos.
Social media is of special concern. MEPs from the Greens and the liberal Renew Europe demanded regulation to fight addictive design policy. The center-right European People’s Party, von der Leyen’s political family, called for measures to curb cyberbullying.
“We will convene the first-ever European-wide inquiry on the impact of social media on the wellbeing of young people,” von der Leyen stated in her election speech to the European Parliament. “My heart bleeds when I read about young people harming themselves or even taking their lives because of online abuse.”
Parliament socialists demand legislation on addictive design. Liberal Renew also “called for a new legislation addressing social media risks for youth,” its manifesto argued that social media exposes children to harmful content, which can lead to increased aggression, unhealthy eating habits, and poor body image. In a nod to these demands, von der Leyen said she would propose a “right to disconnect” from digital technologies to improve mental health.
“I look forward to seeing the measures announced by Ursula von der Leyen, and I will pursue my work to make sure that TikTok does not become a new addiction like cigarettes,” French MEP Stephanie Yon-Courtin says.
In April, the European Commission launched a formal probe into TikTok, demanding that the platform stop its reward program, which encouraged heavy usage. The app “voluntarily” suspended the program. An investigation continues into the app’s addictiveness, especially for children, due to the potential absence of adequate age verification.
While combating digital dangers, the reelected president has signaled that her priority is boosting European competitiveness. Her approach is in line with former Italian prime minister Enrico Letta’s recent report demanding that gaps in the continent’s single market be filled.
“This mandate is the time for investment,” Von der Leyen said in her campaign speech. She proposed a series of measures to improve access to capital for EU companies, saying Europe needs a “liquid capital market and a competition policy that support companies to scale up” because strategic technologies “must be made in Europe.” Research spending will be increased. A new Competitiveness Fund will be launched in early 2025, targeting strategic technologies such as artificial intelligence and space. Biotech will receive its support mechanism to accelerate treatments from labs to factories, she said.
AI represents a priority. Von der Leyen proposes creating an AI Research Council to “pool resources,” similar to the pan-European physics lab CERN. An AI factory initiative will aim to increase small businesses’ access to new technology.
Antitrust represents another priority. Current rules prevent many cross-border European company mergers, particularly in telecoms. These may be loosened. At the same time, von der Leyen vowed to wield new Digital Markets Act powers to reign in large US companies, including Apple, Alphabet, and Microsoft, so-called “digital gatekeepers.”
A crucial question concerns digital sovereignty. Von der Leyen wants to revise the Public Procurement Directive to allow for preference for EU products in strategic sectors. A Science, Tech, Engineering, and Mathematics Education Strategic Plan, she said, would address the “worrying decline” of qualified skilled workers.
Eliza Gkritsi is tech editor at Euractiv.com.
Bandwidth is CEPA’s online journal dedicated to advancing transatlantic cooperation on tech policy. All opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the position or views of the institutions they represent or the Center for European Policy Analysis.
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