The European Commission’s “Digital Omnibus” is billed as a technical adjustment to make business life easier. But in Brussels, few believe it is just that. Bram Vranken, researcher and campaigner at Corporate Europe Observatory, spoke with EU Perspectives about his work on the Omnibus debate and escalating lobbying influence.
While the Commission insists that the Digital Omnibus is a competitiveness-driven proposal to clean overlapping rules, Vranken sees something different. For him, it’s a political opening created by internal deregulation momentum, amplified by external pressure from Washington, and seized by well-resourced corporate actors.
Big Tech’s growing footprint in Brussels
“This is not simplification. This goes way further. It’s a radical deregulatory agenda”, he said, describing a Commission increasingly willing to meet deregulation efforts desired by Big Tech. CEO (Corporate Europe Observatory) and LobbyControl’s latest “article-by-article” analysis shows just that. Of eight changes in the Omnibus proposal, seven mirror industry lobbying positions.
One of the most contentious elements concerns the use of personal data to train AI systems. Under proposed changes, companies would be able to rely more heavily on “legitimate interest” grounds, shifting the burden onto individuals to opt out rather than requiring explicit consent. “The Commission is proposing to make it far easier for AI companies to use personal data to train their models”, Vranken said. “This was very aggressively pushed by Big Tech”.
“The Commission is proposing to make it far easier for AI companies to use personal data to train their models. This was very aggressively pushed by Big Tech”. – Bram Vranken, researcher and campaigner at Corporate Europe Observatory
He also pointed to the redefinition of what counts as personal data. According to the Omnibus, the concept can be subjective on whether a company can anonymise individual data. For the expert, this change “creates uncertainty that favours the biggest players, the ones with dozens of lawyers.”
On AI enforcement, CEO and LobbyControl warn that the Omnibus risks hollowing out existing safeguards. For now, the Commission has proposed delaying parts of the AI Act’s high-risk provisions until late 2027.
You might be interested
Money, meetings and the scale of tech lobbying
According to their previous analysis, digital lobbying is registering records in Brussels. From €113m in 2023 to €151m today, a 33.6 per cent increase in just two years. More than 55 per cent since 2021. The money has translated into people and access. The sector now employs an estimated 890 full-time lobbyists, outnumbering elected MEPs.
“Tech has a massive, massive lobby operation in Brussels”, Vranken said. “Meta, for example, is now the biggest lobby spender. They’re spending around €10M a year.”
That investment buys proximity. In the first half of 2025 alone, Big Tech firms held 146 meetings with senior European Commission officials, more than one per working day. And 232 meetings with members of the European Parliament.
Home and US shadow over EU digital policy
This push intersects with pressure from the United States. The Trump administration has repeatedly spoken against EU digital rules, while floating retaliatory measures against fines or enforcement actions targeting American tech firms. Vranken describes the result as an “explosive mix”. “The homegrown deregulation wave and the pressure coming from the US reinforce each other. That combination is explosive”.
That political climate has also reshaped lobbying strategies inside the European Parliament. CEO and LobbyControl research shows a sharp increase in Big Tech engagement with far-right parties. Particularly by Meta, which has held dozens of meetings with MEPs from the hard-right ECR and far-right Patriots for Europe and Europe of Sovereign Nations. A dramatic rise compared to the previous mandate.
You see the same playbook as in the US: tech companies aligning with the deregulatory right parties, and exporting that strategy to Europe – Bram Vranken, researcher and campaigner at Corporate Europe Observatory
“The far right has gained strength, and that also helps explain the deregulatory momentum”, Vranken said. Together with the centre-right EPP, these groups now command a majority. “You see the same playbook as in the US: tech companies aligning with the deregulatory right parties, and exporting that strategy to Europe”.
Parliament and Council discussions
As the Digital Omnibus enters negotiations, the CEO expert expects the debate to turn openly political. Initial reactions point to resistance across much of the Parliament, with the centre-right and far-right emerging as the main backers of the Commission’s approach. “The danger is not just that the Omnibus passes”, Vranken warned, “but that it comes out worse after parliamentary negotiations.”
In the Council, the picture is more fractured. While some powerful member states, Germany, Italy and Belgium are seen as “hardliners” in Council discussions, others appear uneasy about rolling back enforcement, particularly under the AI Act.
