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   EU goes soft on Big Tech in digital rules overhaul   
      
   Date:   
   Fri, 09 Jan 2026 14:20:00 +0000   
      
   Description:   
   EU Digital Networks Act will require telecoms firms to modernize their   
   networks, but Big Tech is mostly immune.   
      
   FULL STORY   
      
   Big tech firms like Google, Meta, Netflix, Microsoft, and Amazon will not    
   face strict new regulations under the Commission's upcoming Digital Networks   
   Act (DNA) despite lobbying from telecom companies, according to a new Reuters   
   report.    
      
   Despite generating huge amounts of internet traffic, telecoms firms will   
   remain the key target of Europe's DNA, with Big Tech set to follow a    
   voluntary best practices framework instead.    
      
   As a result, Big Tech will face no new legal obligations, but their   
   cooperation will be monitored by Europe's telecoms regulator BEREC. "There   
   will be no new obligations. It will be a best practices regime," a personal   
   familiar with the matter cited by Reuters explained.   
      
   Big Tech won't face DNA enforcement   
      
   Henna Virkkunen, VP of the European Commission for Technological Sovereignty,   
   Security, and Democracy, will formally present the Digital Networks Act on   
   January 20, framing it as an opportunity to boost Europe's competitiveness    
   and increase investment in telecoms infrastructure.    
      
   Further negotiations between EU member states and the bloc's Parliament are   
   expected before the DNA becomes law, but at its core it will focus on   
   modernizing networks through removing copper in favor of full fiber networks.   
   Unsurprisingly, there's also a focus on strengthening cybersecurity across   
   critical networks, including undersea cables.    
      
   Still, reports that Big Tech will be immune from additional regulations is   
   very pertinent. Companies like Apple, Meta, and Google have all faced serious   
   fines from European regulators over the past year, with Trump's    
   administration accusing the EU of launching "discriminatory and harassing   
   lawsuits" against American companies.    
      
   The US even threatened to use "every tool at its disposal" to counter    
   Europe's enforcement.    
      
   Europe's DNA still has political connotations, though, with the upcoming    
   plans designed to help Europe catch up with US and Chinese networks.    
      
   ======================================================================   
   Link to news story:   
   https://www.techradar.com/pro/eu-goes-soft-on-big-tech-in-digital-rules-overha   
   ul   
      
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