For decades, Apple, Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Meta have moved forward with few rules and limitations. As their power, wealth and reach grew, a groundswell of regulatory activity, legislation and legal cases arose against them in Europe, the United States, China, India, Canada, South Korea and Australia. Now the global tipping point for reining in the biggest tech companies has finally tipped.
Companies have been forced to change the everyday technology they offer, including devices and features of their social media services, which has become particularly noticeable to users in Europe. Companies are also making significant changes that are less visible, in their business models, deal making and data sharing practices, for example.
The level of innovation is evident at Apple. Although the Silicon Valley company once offered its App Store as a unified global marketplace, it now has different rules for App Store developers in South Korea, the European Union and the United States due to new laws and court decisions. The company dropped its proprietary design of an iPhone charger due to another EU law, meaning future iPhones will have a charger that works with non-Apple devices.
The changes mean that people’s technology experiences will increasingly vary based on where they live. In Europe, users of Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat under the age of 18 can no longer see ads based on their personal data, the result of a 2022 law called the Digital Services Act. Elsewhere in the world, young people still see such ads on those platforms.
The tech industry is essentially maturing and becoming more like banking, autos and healthcare, with companies adapting their products and services to local laws and regulations, said Greg Taylor, an Oxford University professor who focused on competition in technology markets.
