A group of 25 Republican U.S. lawmakers has urged President Donald Trump to launch a Section 301 trade investigation into the European Union's Digital Markets Act and Digital Services Act. The lawmakers argue that the rules unfairly target American tech giants like Apple, Meta, and Google while sparing Chinese rivals like Temu and AliExpress. While the European Commission maintains its regulations are neutral, U.S. lawmakers warn of potential retaliatory tariffs if negotiations fail.
Section 301 trade investigation requests
- ▪A group of 25 Republican U.S. lawmakers sent a letter to President Donald Trump urging him to launch a Section 301 trade investigation into the European Union's technology regulations.
- ▪The U.S. lawmakers' letter suggests that the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative could use Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 to impose tariffs or other retaliatory measures if dialogue with the European Union fails.
Digital Markets Act gatekeeper rules
- ▪U.S. lawmakers criticized the European Commission's gatekeeper designations for excluding Chinese retail platforms Temu and AliExpress while including American firms Apple, Meta, and Amazon.
- ▪The European Union's Digital Markets Act designates major technology companies, including Amazon, Apple, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Booking Holdings, as gatekeepers subject to strict behavioral rules.
U.S. tech company lobbying efforts
- ▪Apple and Meta have challenged their European Union fines in court, with Apple arguing that the regulations force design changes that could weaken user privacy.
- ▪In October 2024, Apple CEO Tim Cook personally called Donald Trump to voice concerns over European Union fines and regulations, including the Digital Markets Act.
EU cloud services regulatory burdens
- ▪U.S. lawmakers warned that the likely inclusion of Amazon Web Services and Microsoft's cloud units under the Digital Markets Act would impose unprecedented regulatory burdens not faced by European or Chinese competitors.
- ▪The lawmakers' letter criticized an expected European Commission fine against Google for alleged Digital Markets Act violations, claiming the sanction ignores Google's changes to its search services.
Transatlantic technology trade tensions
- ▪CNBC reported that, by April 2026, European Union fines on large technology companies had exceeded $7 billion over a two-year period.
- ▪The European Commission maintains that its digital regulations apply neutrally to all companies operating in the single market to ensure fair competition and do not target any specific country.
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