Let ISPs lock their customers into longer contracts, new EU digital economy chief suggests
Günther Oettinger reckons the best way to get ISPs to invest in their networks is to make it harder for their customers to escape. Spot the problem.
EU digital economy chief wants Google to pay up under new copyright law
Günther Oettinger told Handelsblatt on Tuesday that he wants to introduce an EU-wide copyright law that would extract money from U.S. firms such as Google, as well as from European users.
Hacked celebrities were “stupid”, says incoming EU digital economy and society chief
Günther Oettinger, the man who will likely oversee much of Europe’s digital policy from later this year, made a pretty startling slip-up during his confirmation hearing.
Google’s EU search antitrust case will definitely pass over to the next competition chief
As expected, Google’s big European Union search antitrust case won’t be wrapped up by the end of October and will be passed to the next competition commissioner, Margrethe Vestager. According to IDG, current antitrust chief Joaquín Almunia has conceded that he won’t be able to close the four-year-old case by the end of his tenure, after scores of companies complained about the ineffectiveness of Google’s proposed concessions. Meanwhile, Europe’s incoming digital economy chief, Günther Oettinger, has already made vague noises about limiting Google’s power, mere hours after his appointment was announced. Sounds like this will run into 2015.
Meet the new European commissioners who will have the biggest impact on the tech world
The new-look European Commission was unveiled on Wednesday. They still need final approval, but you should probably get used to hearing about Andrus Ansip, Günther Oettinger, Margrethe Vestager and V?ra Jourová.