Zuckerberg To Meet With EU Regulators Prior To Big Tech Proposals

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has scheduled meetings with European Union (EU) regulators ahead of an official proposal presentation to create a new framework for Big Tech, Reuters reported on Tuesday (Feb. 10).

Zuckerberg will meet with the EU’s digital regulation leaders on Monday (Feb. 17), two days before two commissioners present proposals concerning U.S. Big Tech. In addition to meeting with Margrethe Vestager, the European competition and digital commissioner, Zuckerberg will also meet with Thierry Breton, the internal market commissioner, and Justice Chief Vera Jourova.

“Next week, Mark Zuckerberg will travel to Europe to participate in the Munich Security Conference, and meet with European decision-makers in Brussels to discuss a framework for new rules and regulations for the internet,” Facebook said.

Vestager and Breton are planning to announce proposals on Feb. 19 that call for the creation of a single European data market. The goal is to negate the power of Facebook, Google, Amazon and other U.S. tech giants, as indicated by a proposal seen by Reuters.

Guidelines governing artificial intelligence (AI) will also be discussed. Rules will not be finalized until feedback is considered.

A questionnaire seen by Reuters indicated that Vestager has questions about how Facebook makes use of data collected from classified ads.

In May, Zuckerberg met with European Parliament leaders in Brussels to answer questions about data use. He was specifically asked about the 2.7 million European users’ data that was shared with political consultancy Cambridge Analytica.

Facebook has faced a barrage of criticism over how the data of its tens of millions of users was harvested without their consent.

The social giant issued a press release on Tuesday (Feb. 11) – Safer Internet Day – about the tools it has to “keep people safe across our apps and give them more control over their experience online.”

In December, Facebook told EU regulators that it shouldn’t be forced to share its large amount of data with other companies, as that could have unintended potential liability and privacy risks. Vestager said regulators are concerned that large tech companies could block out rivals, and her organization might have to compel them to give data to competitors so there would be an even playing field.