Vestager is urging European lawmakers to abide by the rules to regulate Big Tech

Margrethe Vestager, head of EU competition and digital policy, urged the European Parliament and the European Council to pass urgent sanctions against Big Tech, even though they were imperfect.

Speaking ahead of FT-ETNO Tech and Politics forum On Monday, Vestager stated: “It is important for everyone to realize that it is better to get 80 percent now than 100 percent at all. This is another way of saying that the perfect should not be the enemy of the best. ”

Vestager’s complaint comes after almost a year of negotiations between EU regulators and lawmakers, who have struggled to comply with the effective publication of the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the Digital Services Act (DSA). The DMA was created to force so-called gatekeepers, such as Google, to ensure similar terms on their online platforms, while the DSA seeks to explain how large online companies should store illegal content on their platforms.

Vestager missed the opportunity for lawmakers to reconsider the new legislation once it was enacted, which means bringing it back to the EU Parliament and Council.

“We will not allow 20 years to go by until we return [the legislation]. With parliament and the responsibility of the council we can make a very powerful book that can be launched soon, “said Vestager.

Recent DMA publications were voted by MEPs at the European Parliament Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) on November 22, before the December elections.

DMA could affect companies with a market capitalization of less than € 80bn – including Google, Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Microsoft – and prevent Big Tech from putting its services ahead of its competitors.

DSA was not voted on before IMCO; however the idea of ​​drafting it with the DMA was approved by the European Council on November 25.

The final phase of the DMA and DSA is to discuss three ways between the Commission, Parliament and Council to agree on a single point before it becomes law.

On Monday a letter written by 12 executives of major European telecoms companies, including Deutsche Telekom, Telefónica and Vodafone, will request “concrete and immediate action” from consultants on these technical rules.

Vestager said the Brussels policy would seek to show “many of these businesses that democracy supports and helps them find a market”.