Friday

1st Sep 2017

Supercomputing lag could prompt EU brain drain

“We are not in the top-10 or the top-five in the world when it comes to high-performance computing but we have the potential to do it," says EU digital commissioner Mariya Gabriel.

Estonia tests water for own virtual currency

Following the success of cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, some in the Baltic nation propose introducing their own version for their e-residents. But what about the euro?

Column / Brussels Bytes

Commission right to reject screen-scraping ban

Screen-scraping, which is the process of scanning what the customer sees when they log into their online bank accounts, should still be allowed as a fail-safe.

Investigation

Fines on open internet vary greatly in EU

The fine for violating the EU principle of net neutrality is €9,600 in Estonia, while it can be up to €1 million in Bulgaria, Luxembourg, and Belgium.

EU fines Google €2.4 bn over online shopping

Brussels says Google has abused a near-monopoly position in online searches to favour its shopping service, but the US company said Brussels cannot prove the charges.

MEPs to grill youngest ever EU commissioner

Mariya Gabriel, a Bulgarian MEP, is designated to take up the EU commission's digital affairs portfolio, although she has little experience with that file.

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No more roaming charges in EU

Major telecoms operators across all 28 EU states have scrapped roaming fees on data, text messages, and calls, as of Thursday (15 June).

Magazine

Sharing economy: Lobbyists educate EU officials

The European Collaborative Economy Forum, a trade association, has recently started doing advocacy work, while Uber increased its spending on EU lobbying significantly.

Digital currency, the Airbnb and Uber killer

The digital currency Ethereum allows people to run so-called smart contracts, potentially creating a decentralised sharing economy, and could be the beginning of the end for firms like Uber and Airbnb.