The Brussels Beat

Is Google’s ad tech empire too powerful to regulate—or just powerful enough to break up?

In this wide-ranging interview, Javier Espinoza (Europe Executive Editor at The Capitol Forum) speaks with Damien Geradin, one of the lead lawyers behind the EC’s ad tech antitrust case against Google. They discuss:

How the case began with a single publisher complaint

Why self-preferencing across the ad tech stack is a competition issue

The failure of behavioral remedies in France

The political and legal implications of structural separation

What the U.S. DOJ case means for Europe’s timing

Whether the DMA is delivering on its promises

This conversation is essential viewing for anyone following Big Tech regulation, EU competition law, and digital market enforcement.

🔗 Subscribe to The Capitol Forum for more interviews and analysis

In a wide-ranging conversation, Olivier Guersent—former Director-General for Competition at the European Commission—joins Javier Espinoza, Europe Executive Editor at The Capitol Forum and host of The Brussels Beat, to reflect on decades of leadership in EU public policy.

Together, they explore:

• Guersent’s return to public life following a near-fatal accident in 2010
• His role in forging the EU’s banking union and navigating multiple financial crises
• The challenges and unfinished business of enforcing the Digital Markets Act
• Why Europe must rethink its approach to constant new legislation
• And what it would take for the EU to become a true strategic power—not just a regulatory one

Guersent also shares what policymakers often misunderstand about Big Tech, mergers, and industrial policy—and explains why crisis remains the EU’s default driver of reform.

This week, Javier Espinoza, Europe Executive Editor of The Capitol Forum, speaks with Martijn Snoep, head of the Dutch Competition Authority, about the evolving landscape of antitrust enforcement in Europe.

Snoep emphasizes the need for a value-based competition policy over transactional deal-making and highlights the challenges of regulating Big Tech. While he sees Europe’s Digital Markets Act (DMA) as a step forward, he stresses that strong enforcement is essential to curb monopolistic practices.

He also advocates for new regulatory tools to address market concentration, particularly in areas where traditional antitrust measures fall short—such as private equity-driven acquisitions. Additionally, he warns against the politicization of competition law, rejects claims that Europe's regulatory actions stem from a lack of domestic tech giants, and calls for more proactive, collaborative enforcement across EU member states.

Despite challenges in digital and energy transitions, Snoep remains optimistic about Europe’s ability to enhance its competitive position through innovation, regulatory modernization, and deeper economic integration.

As transatlantic tensions rise and global markets fracture under the weight of tariffs and techno-nationalism, Europe finds itself at a crossroads. In this wide-ranging conversation, Andreas Schwab, senior MEP and architect of the Digital Markets Act, reflects on the EU’s strategic imperative: to fortify its internal market, enforce tech regulation, and restore global relevance in the face of American unpredictability.

From Trump-era trade disruptions to the structural challenges of building a sovereign digital ecosystem, this episode offers a candid look at Europe’s regulatory ambitions—and its limitations. Can Brussels remain the global standard-setter, or is it time to rethink the Brussels Effect?

🔍 Topics explored:

Europe’s slow but deliberate push for digital sovereignty

The Digital Markets Act and the future of tech competition

Transatlantic frictions and the risks of economic decoupling

Whether globalization is, in fact, over

Why internal EU reform—not new alliances—may be the bloc’s greatest challenge

🎙️ Hosted by Javier Espinoza Europe Executive Editor at The Capitol Forum.

📍 Guest: Andreas Schwab, MEP and long-time digital policy strategist.

As the European Union imposes its first fines under the landmark Digital Markets Act, former Commissioner Thierry Breton joins The Brussels Beat for his first Brussels interview since leaving office. Far from declaring victory, Breton calls the penalties against Apple and Meta “regrettable”—a signal not of enforcement success, but of corporate failure.

In this episode, we unpack why Europe’s goal was dialogue, not punishment; how soft power still underpins Brussels’ regulatory strategy; and what’s next for Google, TikTok, and the future of global tech governance. Tune in for a sharp conversation about rules, resistance, and the recalibration of power in the digital age.

In this exclusive interview, Capitol Forum’s Javier Espinoza sits down with Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice President of the European Commission, to talk climate ambition, competition policy, and the future of Europe’s green industrial strategy.

Named one of TIME's most influential people of 2025, Ribera is tasked with driving the EU’s clean energy transition and enforcing fair competition—including landmark efforts to rein in Big Tech through the Digital Markets Act.

We cover:

Her reflections after six months in office

Balancing green transition with industrial competitiveness

Standing up to greenwashing and U.S. pressure on EU tech regulation

What leadership looks like in a fracturing geopolitical moment

Don’t miss this wide-ranging and timely conversation on the future of Europe’s economic and environmental model.

In this episode of The Brussels Beat, EU Executive Editor Javier Espinoza sits down with Enrico Letta—former Italian Prime Minister and author of the landmark report on the future of the Single Market—for a sweeping discussion on Europe's path forward.

Letta reflects on his 60-city listening tour, his diagnosis of EU fragmentation, and concrete proposals to restore Europe’s competitiveness.

Topics include:

-Why Europe’s fragmented market is fueling decline

-Creating true EU champions in telecom, defense, and tech

-How to fix Europe's financial system with a "Savings and Investments Union"

-The cultural shift needed to embrace integration

-And why the Single Market is the beating heart of the European project

Letta also shares behind-the-scenes moments from his report writing journey and makes the case for pragmatism, not nostalgia, in the face of global challenges from Trump to China.

An exclusive interview with Margrethe Vestager, the former EU Antitrust Chief addressed concerns about a potential shift in U.S.- EU relations with the election of President Donald Trump.

The interview is the first of a regular podcast hosted by Capitol Forum’s new Europe Executive Editor Javier Espinoza that will include some of the biggest names in European policy. Mr. Espinoza, a leading voice in Brussels regulatory coverage, recently joined Capitol Forum after nearly a decade at the Financial Times.