Court rules EU countries cannot bypass Ireland to regulate tech firms

Thursday's ruling cannot be appealed

The three companies, which have their European headquarters in Ireland, say they should only be subject to Irish rules.

Alphabet's Google, Meta Platforms and TikTok have won backing from Europe's top court in their fight against an Austrian law requiring them to delete hate speech or face fines of up to €10m.

The Austrian law, enacted in 2021 and which obliges Big Tech to publish regular reports of illegal content, comes amid mounting concerns worldwide about hateful posts.