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German Green Party Leader: EU penalties against Meta and Apple are a ‘important signal’

by AI | 23.Apr 2025 | Europe in brief AI

US technology companies Apple and Meta are to pay a total fine of 700 million euros for violations of EU law. Too little, believes a member of the Greens in Germany.

Franziska Brantner, chair of the Greens in Germany, speaks at a press conference after her party's board meeting to media representatives. Photo: Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Berlin (dpa) – The fines imposed by the EU Commission against the US technology companies Apple and Meta are, from the perspective of the German Green Party chairwoman Franziska Brantner, an important signal. They show that the European Union is “not a lawless space,” not even for US tech companies, Brantner told the German Press Agency.

The EU is strong when its member states act together and consistently enforce what has been decided collectively, emphasized the co-party leader. However, the decision on fines can only be a first step. “We need more joint investments, more innovations for our own European platforms.”

The EU Commission imposed fines of 500 million euros against Apple and 200 million euros against Meta on Wednesday. According to the authority, the companies violated European digital law. Legal action can still be taken against the fines.

Green MP Audretsch would have preferred higher fines

The German Green federal MP Andreas Audretsch considers the fines to be “clearly too low.” Audretsch told dpa: “The Commission should have acted more harshly; in previous cases, the Commission imposed significantly higher fines in the billions. There should be no doubt that the Commission is willing to exhaust all legal means to enforce European law.”

“It is good that Europe is acting together and taking action against the monopoly power of Apple and Meta,” said Audretsch. “Both companies have disregarded the rules of fair competition in Europe. We must not tolerate that Apple and Meta make substantial profits in Europe at the expense of consumers and medium-sized businesses. Anyone offering their services in Europe must adhere to our laws.” If Apple and Meta let the 60-day deadline pass without paying the fines, further steps would need to be taken. (April 23)