Meta and the rest of the U.S. tech scene are in a real bind when it comes to Europe. Thanks to a series of legal rulings and regulatory decisions in recent years, Meta lacks any legal basis for exporting Europeans’ personal data to the U.S.—and although these cases have revolved around the Facebook parent, the same applies to other American companies, particularly in the consumer internet business.
Their only hope is that the European Commission—the EU’s executive body—quickly comes up with a new, long-lasting transatlantic data-sharing agreement to replace the two that have already been struck down by the bloc’s top court. Being a political animal, the commission is trying its best to make this happen. But as of this week, it’s increasingly looking like those efforts will be doomed.
