[sturgill]

"...then you are likely covered." "it's looking unlikely..." "...run this site from a limited company..."

I can understand why a small project that isn't immediately profitable can take a look at the uncertainty and say, "no thanks."

[ryanlol]

If such uncertainty is really an issue, how do you cope with society in general?

[sturgill]

If you're a big multinational, these uncertainties are a cost of doing business. You have a dedicated team of in-house attorneys and many other high priced lawyers on retainer. If the worst happens, you start private negotiations on settlements. When I worked for a firm owned by a very large multinational, our parent company basically had an IRS auditor with a dedicated office inside of the parent's headquarters. But you can absorb that cost across multiple entities.

Within society "in general" there are usually other forms for quantifying, and spreading, the cost of uncertainty among larger groups. We usually call those markets "insurance." Car insurance, life insurance, health insurance, disability insurance, homeowners insurance, landlord insurance... all of it exists to "cope" with uncertainty.

If you're running a small operation that's hovering at or below breakeven, it's reasonable to look at the existing uncertainty surrounding GDPR and find that the only winning move is to not play.

I'm not a FUD guy; I'm a numbers guy. Uncertainty is real and entire markets exist to deal with them. Where there are _not_ markets that allow you to quantify uncertainty, it is reasonable to look at the potential downside and say, "that's not worth the risk."

I'd be very hard pressed to run a business that catered to the EU at this point until the first N lawsuits happen. There's a reason why in the US people prefer to incorporate in Delaware: it's not because it's the most business friendly state, it's because there is so little uncertainty in case law.

I am making no claims as to whether GDPR is a good thing or a bad thing. Simply that it's an unknown thing. And unless you have the pockets to play in unchartered legal territory, it is perfectly reasonable to shake one's head and walk away.