Trying something a bit different here: my first self published article on my website! In this first post, I look back to the start of the month when the Commission announced that Meta was found preliminarily in breach of the European Digital Services Act for its platforms addictive designs.

Challenging Big Tech’s Business Model: Regulatory Coherence or Contradiction?

On July 10, 2026, Meta was found preliminarily in breach of the European Digital Services Act (DSA), a regulation that aims to protect user’s fundamental rights online. The investigation took issue wi...

megan-kirkwood.ghost.io

The European Commission fined Google €460 million for self-preferencing in Search and €430 million for Play Store steering restrictions. Megan Kirkwood breaks down the findings and what comes next.

The High Stakes Behind the EU’s €890M Google DMA Fine

Megan Kirkwood breaks down Google’s €890M Digital Markets Act fine, self-preferencing findings, Play Store rules and the next phase of enforcement.

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The European Commission fined Google €460 million for self-preferencing in Search and €430 million for Play Store steering restrictions. Megan Kirkwood breaks down the findings and what comes next.

The High Stakes Behind the EU’s €890M Google DMA Fine

Megan Kirkwood breaks down Google’s €890M Digital Markets Act fine, self-preferencing findings, Play Store rules and the next phase of enforcement.

buff.ly

The very long awaited decision by the @ec.europa.eu regarding #Google's Digital Markets Act compliance was released today. Here is my report for @techpolicypress.bsky.social which breaks it all down

The High Stakes Behind the EU’s €890M Google DMA Fine

Megan Kirkwood breaks down Google’s €890M Digital Markets Act fine, self-preferencing findings, Play Store rules and the next phase of enforcement.

techpolicy.press

We joined partner civil society organisations in writing to Andy Burnham as he becomes PM. We highlight US-based technology firms' excessive power over the UK economy and digital infrastructure, and urge him to curb this influence. Read our letter: www.article19.org/resources/uk...

UK: New prime minister must take a tough stance on AI and Big Tech - ARTICLE 19

The new prime minister must protect the UK's economy, security and democracy by addressing the threat of dominant Big Tech and AI monopolies.

article19.org

I attended this last night and it was even better than I expected, just superb stuff from @jim.killock.org.uk, @megafreda.eurosky.social and @jmaris.me - and inspired (and inspiring!) breakout room discussions too.

Open Rights Group@openrightsgroup.org · last mo.

Yesterday we hosted an event on how the UK can build Digital Sovereignty. Our panel explored open source and the Digital Commons in creating a more resilient, transparent and equitable future. Catch up on the event with @jim.killock.org.uk, @megafreda.eurosky.social and @jmaris.me. Watch now ⬇️

Yesterday we hosted an event on how the UK can build Digital Sovereignty. Our panel explored open source and the Digital Commons in creating a more resilient, transparent and equitable future. Catch up on the event with @jim.killock.org.uk, @megafreda.eurosky.social and @jmaris.me. Watch now ⬇️

From Digital Dependence to Digital Sovereignty

youtube.com

TODAY! Really looking forward to the discussions :)

Open Rights Group@openrightsgroup.org · last mo.

TOMORROW ⏰️ Join our special event on how the UK can build back control over our digital infrastructure, data and tech with open source. Hear from @jim.killock.org.uk, @megafreda.eurosky.social and Jordan Maris discuss Digital Sovereignty. 🗓️ 15 July 🕧️ 6-8pm BST 💻️ Online Register now ⬇️

TOMORROW ⏰️ Join our special event on how the UK can build back control over our digital infrastructure, data and tech with open source. Hear from @jim.killock.org.uk, @megafreda.eurosky.social and Jordan Maris discuss Digital Sovereignty. 🗓️ 15 July 🕧️ 6-8pm BST 💻️ Online Register now ⬇️

From Digital Dependence to Digital Sovereignty

The UK’s over reliance on a small number of foreign technology companies is putting our economy, security and democracy at risk.

openrightsgroup.org

"Do we really want a president to be powerless to implement the protections for consumers, workers and the environment on which he or she ran?" asks Georgetown's Mark MacCarthy—arguing the Supreme Court result in Trump v. Slaughter "might even have some upsides for a new progressive administration."

The Supreme Court’s Decision in Trump v. Slaughter is Misguided, But Changes Little

Mark MacCarthy says the decision will result in a relatively minor increase in executive power.

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The European Commission has joined W Social, a closed-source European platform, weeks after publishing its Open Source Strategy. Megan Kirkwood asks whether the move contradicts the Commission's own goals.

Europe's W Social Bet Tests its Vision of Digital Sovereignty

The European Commission has joined W Social, a closed-source platform. Megan Kirkwood asks what that reveals about Europe's digital sovereignty agenda.

buff.ly

BREAKING: a second select committee has called on the government to trigger the break clause in the NHS contract with Palantir. committees.parliament.uk/committee/81...

Drop Palantir’s Federated Data Platform and look for alternative, MPs tell Health Minister - Committees - UK Parliament

MPs have urged the government to cut ties with Palantir and the Federated Data Platform (FDP), and to begin looking for an alternative.

committees.parliament.uk

As Europe implements policy intended to boost its digital sovereignty, what shape is that sovereignty taking? My latest article looking at the European Commission migrating to W Social, and taking a wider view of what it means going forward

Tech Policy Press@techpolicypress.bsky.social · last mo.

The European Commission has joined W Social, a closed-source European platform, weeks after publishing its Open Source Strategy. Megan Kirkwood asks whether the move contradicts the Commission's own goals.

“Unfettered tech boosterism is a vote-loser,” said one person who has been involved in discussions, adding that Burnham’s team had discussed a new focus on ensuring that AI technology worked for British companies and the UK public rather than US tech giants.

Andy Burnham’s team looks to revamp UK’s AI strategy

Focus is expected to shift to making technology work for local communities rather than US companies

giftarticle.ft.com

What is life after Palantir? Join our special event on how the UK can build back control over our digital infrastructure, data and tech with open source. Hear from @jim.killock.org.uk, @megafreda.eurosky.social and Jordan Maris discuss Digital Sovereignty. 🗓️ 15 July 🕧️ 6-8pm BST 💻️ Online ⬇️ Sign up

From Digital Dependence to Digital Sovereignty

The UK’s over reliance on a small number of foreign technology companies is putting our economy, security and democracy at risk.

openrightsgroup.org

Slaughter is an earthquake: SCOTUS has overturned a 90-year-old precedent that facilitated much of modern governance by granting many agencies meaningful independence from the president. Now SCOTUS crushes that independence ... for seemingly every agency except the Federal Reserve.

SCOTUS has just ignored its own precedent to make sure the commissioners of independent regulatory agencies like the FTC, FCC etc. — who go through the same appointment and confirmation process as SCOTUS justices — can now be fired by POTUS as political retribution.

"The President can fire members of the Federal Trade Commission without cause, the Supreme Court has said, overturning a 90-year-old precedent that insulated the antitrust enforcer from the White House" globalcompetitionreview.com/gcr-usa/arti... - well this seems very bad

SCOTUS permits Slaughter’s firing

The president can fire members of the Federal Trade Commission without cause, the Supreme Court has said, overturning a 90-year-old precedent that insulated the antitrust enforcer from the White House...

globalcompetitionreview.com

One of the best things about the Dreaming Against the Machine podcast is @adambecker.bsky.social absolutely cackling down the mic

How will Andy Burnham approach tech policy as UK Prime Minister? Tech Policy Press fellow James Ball reads the clues: skepticism on surveillance, “not now” on digital ID, and likely continuity on Starmer’s under-16 social media ban.

How Will Andy Burnham Handle Tech Policy as UK Prime Minister?

The signs suggest continuity more than change, writes Tech Policy Press fellow James Ball.

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Google and Apple are framing the EU's DMA interoperability mandates as privacy and security risks, writes George Colville of Open Markets Institute Europe. He argues these claims should be assessed by independent experts, not incumbents with conflicting interests.

Google and Apple’s anti-DMA Lobbying Strategy Goes All-in on Security and Privacy

As the EU opens mobile ecosystems under the DMA, Apple and Google are framing interoperability rules as privacy and security risks, writes George Colville.

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"The European Commission is set to unveil its preliminary findings as early as next week, stating that AWS and Azure seem to meet the requirements to face the bloc’s Digital Markets Act, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke under condition of anonymity."

Microsoft, Amazon Cloud Services Face Tough EU Antitrust Law

Microsoft Corp.’s Azure and Amazon Web Services are on a collision course with the European Union’s tough digital competition rulebook, after an initial probe into their power over the cloud.

bloomberg.com

What an insightful breakdown of both the policy process and how the harms a social media ban is supposed to fix get completely missed through pursuing the ban approach - great blog @jim.killock.org.uk @openrightsgroup.org

The social media policy ratchet

For more than a decade, UK governments have introduced successive child safety measures, responding to public concern about the availability of content that is either unsuitable or harmful to children...

openrightsgroup.org

👏🏻👏🏻 “The deepest function of sovereignty is that a government defends its own continued existence and its exclusive right to authorise force. What we watched instead was governments declining to do so, in public, with the world's richest man openly calling for their imprisonment.”

Laurens@laurenshof.online · 2mo ago

new from me: on this week's riots in Belfast, Musk, and European states openly declining to defend their own sovereignty. What does it even mean to build digital sovereignty infrastructure when states themselves don't want to be sovereign? connectedplaces.online/reports/fr16...

new from me: on this week's riots in Belfast, Musk, and European states openly declining to defend their own sovereignty. What does it even mean to build digital sovereignty infrastructure when states themselves don't want to be sovereign? connectedplaces.online/reports/fr16...

FR#166 – No Change

Many people in Europe see the open social web as a path to digital sovereignty. This week demonstrated a problem: the assumption that European governments actually want to be sovereign.

connectedplaces.online

"Palantir’s UK boss Louis Mosley says Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, who blocked Mosley’s news contract with the Met Police this week, is “putting politics over public safety.” www.techpolicy.press/palantirs-uk...

Palantir’s UK Troubles Expose the Limits of 'Free' Tech Deals

As Palantir's recent UK contract losses highlight concerns over procurement, pricing and the lack of evidence behind its claims, writes Martha Dark.

techpolicy.press

A civil society group's successful bid to intervene in Apple's challenge to EU interoperability rules illustrates how enforcement of the Digital Markets Act is being shaped beyond the Commission, writes Megan Kirkwood.

Civil Society Role Grows in EU’s DMA Case Against Apple

The Free Software Foundation Europe's intervention in Apple's DMA challenge is a test case for civil society's role in tech regulation, writes Megan Kirkwood.

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A civil society group's successful bid to intervene in Apple's challenge to EU interoperability rules illustrates how enforcement of the Digital Markets Act is being shaped beyond the Commission, writes Megan Kirkwood.

Civil Society Role Grows in EU’s DMA Case Against Apple

The Free Software Foundation Europe's intervention in Apple's DMA challenge is a test case for civil society's role in tech regulation, writes Megan Kirkwood.

techpolicy.press

Anthony Whelan’s appointment to lead DG COMP comes at a critical moment for the EU, writes Mark Dempsey. As the Commission pursues a “competitiveness” agenda and considers weaker merger control, the key question is whether EU competition policy will resist corporate concentration or accommodate it.

Ireland's Whelan Must Prove EU Competition Law Still Has Credibility

Anthony Whelan’s appointment to DG COMP raises questions over EU competition policy, tech regulation, and Europe’s competitiveness agenda, writes Mark Dempsey.

buff.ly

New from me, on the decision by the @ec.europa.eu to not extend the DMA interoperability requirements to social media, and how this closes off a pathway for mass adoption of open social networks. connectedplaces.online/reports/fr16...

FR#162 – EU Regulation Won’t Save Open Social Networks

The European Commission has decided not to extend the Digital Markets Act's interoperability rules to social media, closing off a potential pathway for adoption for open social networks.

connectedplaces.online