Facebook's parent company, Meta, again threatened to exit the European market if it fails to complete an ongoing pact to exempt it from certain aspects of the European Union's GDPR regulations.
Meta made the remarks in its annual letter to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), describing the company's ongoing dispute with multiple European regulators over the transfer of expensive user data to and from Europe. (Meta, not surprisingly, is based in the US.)
“If a new transatlantic data transfer framework is not adopted and we cannot continue to rely on SCCs or other alternative means of transferring data from Europe to the US, it is unlikely that we will be able to offer some of our most essential products. and services, including Facebook and Instagram, in Europe, which would have a material and adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results.
Speaking to City AM, Meta's Nick Clegg supported the idea, stating that "the lack of safe and legal international data transfers would harm the economy and hinder the development of data-driven companies in the European Union. European Union, as stated We are looking for a restoration of Covid19".
We've been here before
This is not the first time that Meta (or Facebook, as it was known then) has made this threat. In XNUMX, the company made similar claims when it seemed that the Irish data regulator would ban transatlantic data flows.
"In the event that they have been subject to a complete suspension of the transfer of user data to the US," said Facebook lawyer Yvonne Cunnane, "it is not clear... how, in these circumstances, it could continue to provide Facebook and Instagram services in the European Union."
Leaving Europe, as Meta claims, would greatly damage its business and would surely be a last resort for the company. Speaking to City AM, Meta stated that it "had absolutely no desire or plans to withdraw from Europe, but the simple reality is that Meta, and many other companies, organizations and services, depend on data transfers between the European Union and the US in order to operate global services.
As you can imagine, European lawmakers weren't impressed, which might be a bit harsh considering that Meta asserted to the SEC as part of his general fiduciary duties.
I have always asked for an alternative option to the #privacyshield of the European Union and the US to find a balanced agreement on data exchange + I have always and in all circumstances asked for flexibility in the #GDPR. However, #META cannot simply coerce the European Union into giving up its data protection standards, leaving the European Union would be its undoing. February 2022, XNUMX
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@Meta is fighting to do business in the European Union due to #GDPR. My suggestion to @Meta: conform your business to the rules of the European Union when doing business here. The European Union is not going to suit you. PS: more legislation is on the way: #dsa #dma. You better start getting used to it. #eu #dataprotectionFebruary 6, 2022
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