EU’s new content crackdown rules restrict internet freedom.
The Internet Becomes Less Free in Europe as New Law Takes Effect
The internet has become less free in Europe as parts of a new law took effect on Friday in the European Union (EU) that require large online platforms to take down content that bureaucrats in the bloc deem to be “disinformation” or “hate speech.”
New rules in the sweeping Digital Services Act (DSA), which is being adopted in phases, came into force on Aug. 25, imposing strict requirements on Big Tech companies regarding user privacy, transparency—and content.
Starting today, a host of internet giants—including Meta (Facebook) and Alphabet (Google)—face new obligations in the 27 countries that make up the EU, including banning certain user-targeting practices and preventing “harmful” content from spreading.
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The EU’s top tech enforcer, industry commissioner Thierry Breton, warned in a post on X (formerly Twitter) that the bloc will take policing compliance with the new rules seriously.
“My services and I will thoroughly enforce the DSA, and fully use our new powers to investigate and sanction platforms where warranted,” Mr. Breton stated.
“Complying with the DSA is not a punishment,” he continued. “It is an opportunity for platforms to reinforce their trustworthiness.”
Offenders found to be in breach of the DSA could face a whopping fine worth up to 6 percent of their global turnover. Companies that break the rules repeatedly could be banned from doing business in the EU entirely.
Mr. Breton’s post was met with mostly critical reactions online.
‘”Compliance isn’t punishment, it’s opportunity.’ That doesn’t sound tyrannical at all. Sounds like a normal sentence that someone who loves freedom would say,” one user wrote, poking fun at Mr. Breton’s apparent doublespeak.
Mr. Breton posted a video on X warning that he will be “very, very rigorous” about enforcement.
“The DSA is here, here to protect free speech against arbitrary decisions and, at the same time, to protect our citizens and democracies against illegal content,” he said.
“My services and I will now be very, very rigorous to check that systemic platforms comply with the DSA. We will be investigating and sanctioning them, if not the case,” Mr. Breton added.
‘We Don’t Need the Return of Fascism’
In this phase of implementation, the new DSA rules apply to 19 “very large” digital platforms (such as social media networks, websites, and online retailers) with at least 45 million active users in the EU.
The 19 platforms that fall under the umbrella of the new rules are: Alibaba AliExpress, Amazon Store, Apple AppStore, Bing, Booking.com, Facebook, Instagram, Google Maps, Google Play, Google Search, Google Shopping, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Wikipedia, YouTube, and Zalando.
None of the designated companies have said they will disobey the the new rules, but Amazon and Zalando have argued that they shouldn’t be included on the list. Both companies filed legal challenges, which remain pending.
“These systemic platforms play a very, very important role in our daily life, and it is really the time now for Europe, for us, to set our own rules,” Mr. Breton said in a separate post on X. “A safer Internet for everyone,” he added.
Michel Jean-Dominique, a Swiss anthropologist and free speech advocate, took a dim view of Mr. Breton’s remarks.
“We don’t need the return of fascism abusively imposed by unelected crooks,” he wrote in reply.
A likely big question on the minds of Brussels bureaucrats is whether X will comply with the new rules.
X (Twitter) was among five social media platforms that did a “stress-test” a few months ago to check compliance with the new rules. After the results came back, EU officials expressed disappointment that the Elon Musk-owned platform lagged behind the others and didn’t seem to be taking the bloc’s fight against ”disinformation” all that seriously.
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