- The EU is not a state, it's a governance body composed of representatives from individual member states. Every state is responsible for implementing their take on the directive.
- "EU poor track record on fostering innovation" - many things you use online have been researched and conceptualised in the EU. Even if they go elsewhere for funding, don't mistake where "innovation" happens and where it gets packaged by VC money for sale and enschitification.
- compliance costs: I think that's only expensive for companies who intend to to sell or otherwise do something shady with user data. Remember, not collecting data makes you instantly compliant with zero cost.
It's a supranational institution that dictates laws to States, with a budget and coercive powers against States. It just lacks an army of its own. Whether it's a proper state or not doesn't matter.
> conceptualised in the EU
No, in Europe. No EU bureaucrat conceptualizes things. EU =\= Europe.
> I think that's only expensive for companies who intend to to sell or otherwise do something shady with user data. Remember, not collecting data makes you instantly compliant with zero cost.
A lot of businesses need consumer data to improve their offerings and be competitive against the big boys. And RGPD lawyers ain't cheap, so even if you keep the minimal amount of data, you have to fork €10k+ to review everything, etc. The requirements for AI are even worse. All of those compliance jobs are unproductive and a burden on EU companies.
Same for the tax compliance obligations, which are ever increasing and now require you to record and document everything, especially if you do cross-border operations, as you are considered guilty by default if you don't.
We could also talk about the requirements to audit your sourcing chain for "human rights abuses", which ends in compliance hell for industrial companies with 2k+ suppliers, while of course Chinese companies don't have this problem.
The EU doesn't do any cost/benefit analysis on this, and just suppose that companies will magically find ressources to deal with their new regulatory "innovations".
Ok, I think you're reading a lot of tabloids as none of the above are actually true.
Regarding
> Institution that dictates laws to States
again no, because the laws are created and voted by elected representatives of said states, so the EU is not some 3rd party that exists on the side, the EU is the countries within it. Member states create their own laws.
Please point what is false. Does the EU, as an institution, produces technology? No Europeans do, did it before the EU, and don't need the EU to do it. WWW was created in Switzerland by an English scientist. Not in a ugly "bureaucrat-grey" building in Brussels.
What you are saying here is false: EU regulations are directly applicable, and don't need to be transposed into local laws.
It's the case for directives, which are required to be incorporated within 2 years. If the State doesn't comply, it faces an infringement procedure (Article 258 TFEU:), sanctions and fines (Article 260 TFEU).
The EU itself is not a real democracy, given that at every step obscurity and backroom-dealing is preferred to transparency. Chat Control is an excellent example of it: it was recommended by officials whose names were redacted. Even when the European Parliament said no in the past, they try to push it again - those fools can't anyway vote a law preventing the EC to do it!
More formally, the only directly elected institution (the parliament) doesn't have initiative power, doesn't hold the pen during trilogue negociations, is highly corruptible[0] given the proportional election, and can just "accept" the head of the European Commission. The EC is the only permanent body and can arbitrage rotating presidencies, pressure parties, and do screening on MPs to get what they want.
The lack of judicial consequences regarding Van Der Leyen after the sms affair is quite appalling for a commission that yells about "compliance" every day of the year.
- The EU is not a state, it's a governance body composed of representatives from individual member states. Every state is responsible for implementing their take on the directive.
- "EU poor track record on fostering innovation" - many things you use online have been researched and conceptualised in the EU. Even if they go elsewhere for funding, don't mistake where "innovation" happens and where it gets packaged by VC money for sale and enschitification.
- compliance costs: I think that's only expensive for companies who intend to to sell or otherwise do something shady with user data. Remember, not collecting data makes you instantly compliant with zero cost.