For a long time I've been hoping to be able to pay for Google products so I can use them without being the product myself. And so this statement is sort of an answer to those prayers.
If the EU gets its way here, all that'll happen is that:
a) New releases of Android won't be open source anymore.
b) The cost of Android may well skyrocket, making smartphones suddenly an elite luxury rather than something everyone can have.
c) Android devices will still come with lots of Google services that will work in largely the same way, because most users actually want them.
d) Cyanogen and other variants of Android designed for people who care an unusual amount about data and privacy will cease to exist.
It'd be a classic case of regulatory own goals: nothing would get better, it'd get worse for everyone.
This is pessimism bordering on FUD.
For a long time I've been hoping to be able to pay for Google products so I can use them without being the product myself. And so this statement is sort of an answer to those prayers.