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DMA & DSA: The High-Stakes Battle Between Europe and Big Tech

The European Union has thrown down the gauntlet to the world’s tech giants with two landmark pieces of legislation: the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Digital Markets Act (DMA). The DSA focuses on content moderation, illegal material, and platform transparency, while the more disruptive DMA targets anti-competitive practices by so-called “gatekeepers”—the dominant digital platforms that control access to markets and users.

For Apple, Meta, and Microsoft, these regulations signal the end of an era of unchecked dominance. Yet rather than comply passively, these companies are deploying sophisticated legal, technical, and lobbying strategies to bend the rules in their favor—often honoring the letter of the law while undermining its spirit.

🍏 Apple: The Art of “Malicious Compliance”

For Apple, the DMA poses an existential threat to its most profitable business model: the tightly controlled iOS ecosystem and App Store. Forced by the DMA to allow third-party app stores and alternative payment systems—something it has long resisted in the name of security—Apple has responded with a masterclass in “malicious compliance.”

Its main weapon? The Core Technology Fee (CTF). Under this new policy, developers who distribute apps outside the App Store must pay Apple €0.50 for every installation beyond the first million per year. For popular free or freemium apps—like those from Meta or major mobile games—this fee could prove far more costly than the traditional 30% commission.

By making “freedom” more expensive than staying within Apple’s walled garden, the company actively discourages developers from exercising their new DMA-granted rights—all while claiming full compliance. The European Commission has already launched a formal investigation into the CTF, suspecting it violates the DMA’s core principles.

📘 Meta: The “Pay or Consent” Gambit

Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) faces scrutiny under both the DMA (for messaging interoperability) and the DSA (for ad targeting and content moderation). Its most controversial response concerns user consent for personalized advertising.

In Europe, Meta rolled out a binary choice: users must either consent to extensive data tracking for targeted ads or pay a monthly subscription for an ad-free experience. Critics—including the European Commission—argue this is no real choice at all. By monetizing privacy, Meta effectively coerces users into surrendering their data, especially those unwilling or unable to pay.

The Commission has already ruled this “pay or consent” model a breach of the DMA, fining Meta €200 million for failing to offer a genuinely free, non-intrusive alternative. The case remains a flashpoint in the broader debate over data ethics and user autonomy.

🖥️ Microsoft: Strategic Proactive Compliance

Having weathered decades of antitrust battles (remember the Internet Explorer saga?), Microsoft has adopted a more diplomatic approach: strategic, proactive compliance.

Designated a gatekeeper for Windows and LinkedIn, Microsoft anticipated regulatory pressure—particularly over the forced bundling of Microsoft Teams with Office 365 and Microsoft 365, which disadvantaged rivals like Slack. Rather than wait for a formal sanction, Microsoft announced in 2023 that it would unbundle Teams globally, not just in the EU.

This preemptive move allowed Microsoft to control the narrative, avoid heavier penalties, and demonstrate “good faith” cooperation. Simultaneously, through intense lobbying and legal argumentation, Microsoft successfully convinced regulators to exclude Edge and Bing from the gatekeeper list, claiming insufficient market dominance.

🏛️ The Real War: Lobbying and Legal Endgames

Beyond technical workarounds, the true battlefield is Brussels. Collectively, GAFAM spends tens of millions of euros annually on lobbying to shape, delay, or dilute EU digital regulations.

When persuasion fails, litigation follows. Apple, Meta, and ByteDance (TikTok) have all challenged their gatekeeper designations in the European courts, arguing flawed market definitions or underestimated competition. While most of these legal bids have failed so far, they serve a strategic purpose: buying time, draining regulatory resources, and sowing legal uncertainty.

The DMA and DSA have opened Pandora’s box—but Big Tech has made it clear it will not relinquish its empires without a fight. The coming years will determine whether Europe’s regulatory ambition can truly rein in the gatekeepers—or whether the giants will continue to outmaneuver the rules from within.

Sources

European Commission. (2024, June 24). Commission sends preliminary findings to Apple and opens new investigation into Apple’s non-compliance under the Digital Markets Act.
European Commission. (2025, April 22). Commission finds Apple and Meta in breach of the Digital Markets Act.
Developpez.com. (2024, July 3). European Commission concludes Meta’s “pay or consent” model violates the DMA.
Novethic. (2024, March 6). Apple, TikTok, Meta… Facing the Digital Markets Act, tech giants strike back.
SoftwareOne Blog. (2025, September 18). Microsoft Teams Unbundled | SoftwareOne blog.
Loyens & Loeff. (2025, September 19). Microsoft's commitments on its Teams platform accepted by European Commission.