Telecom and tech companies have urged Brussels and Washington to tackle long-standing regulatory barriers after a common declaration was published on August 21 setting out more detail on the trade agreement reached with the US in July.
Industry groups said unresolved conflicts over the European Union’s digital rules could limit innovation and competitiveness on both sides of the Atlantic.
The Computer & Communications Industry Association (CCIA), which represents major technology and telecom firms and has offices in the US, Europe and the UK, welcomed the announcement as a “positive first step”.
It warned, though, that many obstacles remained, including the EU’s flagship Digital Markets Act (DMA) and Digital Services Act (DSA). It also pointed to digital services taxes imposed by several member states, cloud computing rules seen as favouring local providers and other restrictions that made access to the EU market more difficult.
“While this framework is a promising development, the real work only begins now,” said Jonathan McHale, CCIA’s vice president for digital trade.
Daniel Friedlaender, who leads CCIA’s Brussels office, added that the preliminary deal “opens the door to more predictable and mutually beneficial digital trade” but urged both sides to focus on “turning pledges into real-world results”.
Not everyone shares this cautious optimism. Some lawmakers said they saw the agreement as too one-sided, arguing that it risked undermining Europe’s autonomy.
Renew MEP Yvan Verougstraete says the European Commission is “signing away strategic independence” and warned that “accepting this deal is accepting American colonialism”.
He argued that, at a time when Europe should be pursuing energy, digital and military sovereignty, “we are signing up for near-total dependence”.
Verougstraete has called for an urgent debate in the European Parliament and said he would summon Commission officials “to account for the concessions made”, he wrote in a press release sent to Brussels Signal August 22.
At the heart of the dispute are the DMA and DSA, which impose strict obligations on large online platforms and so-called “gatekeepers.”
Washington has repeatedly criticised these laws as disproportionately targeting US companies, while Brussels insists they are necessary to ensure fair competition and consumer protection.
According to the Financial Times, disagreements over the issue were one of the reasons the joint statement was delayed. EU officials wanted to keep the bloc’s digital rules off the table, while the US argued they should be included among the “non-tariff barriers” covered by the talks, it said.
The EC’s trade chief, Maroš Šefčovič, stressed on August 21 that the laws were “kept out of the trade talks” and remained untouched. The fact that digital regulation is not a part of trade agreement has been made clear by EU officials since the beginning of the tariffs saga.
Still, the language of the joint statement — pledging to address “unjustified digital trade barriers” — leaves open the possibility that US officials could challenge aspects of the EU’s digital rulebook later, including upcoming legislation like the AI Act.
The statement also confirmed that the EU would not move forward with network usage fees, a proposal that would have required major online platforms to pay telecom operators for traffic, a decision welcomed by both industry and consumer groups.
The joint statement carries political weight but is not legally binding. It does not change any existing rules or tariffs for now. Both sides must still translate its proposals into legal texts and in the EU that means the EC will need approval from the European Parliament and the European Council. Further negotiations are expected this autumn.
Pharmaceuticals, meanwhile, remained a sensitive and unresolved part of the talks.
The July deal had raised expectations of progress on mutual recognition of standards, which would allow regulators on both sides to rely on each other’s testing and certification processes but the August statement made no mention of it.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump had threatened to impose punitive tariffs and launch investigations into European pharmaceuticals, citing supposed “national security” risks.
Trump threatened extremely high tariffs on European pharmaceuticals, at one point suggesting rates could reach 250 per cent, citing trade concerns.
According to the BBC, though, on August 22, these punitive tariffs were ultimately dropped, with the new trade deal capping tariffs at 15 per cent, in line with most other sectors.
Despite this de-escalation, no agreement has been reached on regulatory co-operation in the sector.
For now, digital trade and pharmaceuticals remain two of the biggest unresolved points in the EU–US relationship, with further announcements expected in the autumn as negotiations continue.
