Not only in Europe...
Ariel Pods has just arived in Brazil too. The pouch is exactly like Tide Pods but the small portion of it is green instead of orange.
I still have a bag of american Tide Pods and I noticed they are exactly the same, even the scent.
At least one washing machine manufacturer has changed the dispenser design to handle powders, liquid and also the pods, even knowing they can be simply thrown straight to the load in the drum.
The only good thing I noticed about pods is the delay before dissolving the pods and releasing the detergent when it´s loaded in the dispenser. It gives the machine a few seconds to fill the sump if the water pressure is high enough to do it.
LOL
