Comment by Cthulhu_
21 days ago
> a contractual relationship with a foreign (unless you are in the US) third party that decides what you can or cannot do with it.
I see where you're coming from, but companies like Google have local legal representation (e.g. in Ireland for the EU), and have to operate under EU rules if they want to do business here (just like how a EU business has to operate under US rules). If the EU says that you should be allowed to do your own thing - and they have - then Google can either comply or leave.
Don't attribute more power to companies than they have - they want you to believe they can get away with this, but don't echo their rhetoric.
Ok, how do I as a developer from Croatia get in touch with a legal representative from Google? And I don't mean 5 layers of indirection through AI chatbots and chatbots, forms and canned responses?
As a single developer, you have very little weight against Google. The same is true of a single developer in the US.
What does have weight is the European Union, which Croatia is a member of. If the EU parliament makes a law that Google is not allowed to have these kinds of rules and do business in the EU, then Google will listen. Given the horrible state of the US government, the EU is just about the only force left in the world able and willing to stand up against these tech giants in a way that forces them to pay attention and act responsibly.
The chances are higher that the EU makes a law mandating this sort of thing than demanding dropping this requirement in the EU.
The only thing you can expect from the EU is that it requires that apps in the EU market are signed with keys signed by the EU which you will only be able to get if you provide your ID or business registration.
Between Google and the EU I think I would rather be governed by the devil.
https://support.google.com/faqs/answer/6151275
You don't. You'd have to sue them.
...that makes it worse though. It's just intrusion from more legacy states.
The whole point here is that this requirement is a vector by which states and state-like corporations can exert control over the internet. And the "inter" in internet is weakened by this.