On Friday, Parliament
and Council reached a provisional
political agreement on the Digital
Services Act (DSA). Together with
the
Digital Markets Act,
the DSA will set the standards for a
safer and more open digital space
for users and a level playing field
for companies for years to come.
More
responsible online platforms
Under the new rules,
intermediary services, namely online
platforms - such as social media and
marketplaces - will have to take
measures to protect their users from
illegal content, goods and services.
-
Algorithmic accountability:
the European Commission as well
as the member states will have
access to the algorithms of very
large online platforms;
- Swift
removal of illegal content
online, including products,
services: a clearer
“notice and action” procedure
where users will be empowered to
report illegal content online
and online platforms will have
to act quickly;
-
Fundamental rights to be
protected also online:
stronger safeguards to ensure
notices are processed in a
non-arbitrary and
non-discriminatory
manner and with respect for
fundamental rights, including
the freedom of expression and
data protection;
- More
responsible online marketplaces:
they have to ensure that
consumers can purchase safe
products or services online, by
strengthening checks to prove
that the information provided by
traders is reliable (“Know Your
Business Customer” principle)
and make efforts to prevent
illegal content appearing on
their platforms, including
through random checks;
-
Victims of cyber violence will
be better protected
especially against
non-consensual sharing (revenge
porn) with immediate takedowns;
-
Penalties: online
platforms and search engines can
be fined up to 6% of their
worldwide turnover. In the case
of very large online platforms
(with more that 45 million
users), the EU Commission will
have exclusive power to demand
compliance;
- Fewer
burdens and more time to adapt
for SMEs: longer period
to apply the new rules will
support innovation in the
digital economy. The Commission
will follow closely the
potential economic effects of
the new obligations on small
businesses.
Safer online
space for users
- New
transparency
obligations for
platforms will allow users to be
better informed about how
content is recommended to them
(recommender systems) and to
choose at least one option not
based on profiling;
-
Online advertising:
users will have better control
over how their personal data are
used. Targeted advertising is
banned when it comes to
sensitive data (e.g. based on
sexual orientation, religion,
ethnicity);
-
Protection of minors:
platforms accessible to minors
will have to take specific
measures to protect them,
including by fully banning
targeted advertising;
-
Manipulating users’ choices
through ‘dark patterns’ will be
prohibited: online
platforms and marketplaces
should not nudge people into
using their services, for
example by giving more
prominence to a particular
choice or urging the recipient
to change their choice via
interfering pop-ups. Moreover,
cancelling a subscription for a
service should become as easy as
subscribing to it;
-
Compensation:
recipients of digital services
will have a right to seek
redress for any damages or loss
suffered due to infringements by
platforms.
Harmful
content and disinformation
Very large online
platforms will have to comply with
stricter obligations under the DSA,
proportionate to the significant
societal risks they pose when
disseminating illegal and harmful
content, including disinformation.
- Very
large online platforms will have
to assess and mitigate systemic
risks and be subject to
independent audits each year. In
addition, those large platforms
that use so-called “recommender
systems” (algorithms that
determine what users see) must
provide at least one option that
is not based on profiling;
-
Special measures in times of
crisis: when a crisis
occurs, such as a public
security or health threat, the
Commission may require very
large platforms to limit any
urgent threats on its platforms.
These specific actions are
limited to three months.
“The Digital Services
Act will set new global standards.
Citizens will have better control
over how their data are used by
online platforms and big
tech-companies. We have finally made
sure that what is illegal offline is
also illegal online. For the
European Parliament, additional
obligations on algorithmic
transparency and disinformation are
important achievements,” said
rapporteur
Christel Schaldemose
(DK, S&D). “These new rules also
guarantee more choice for users and
new obligations for platforms on
targeted ads, including bans to
target minors and restricting data
harvesting for profiling.”
Next steps
The
text will need to be finalised at
technical level and verified by
lawyer-linguists, before both
Parliament and Council give their
formal approval. Once this process
is completed, it will come into
force 20 days after its publication
in the EU Official Journal and the
rules will start to apply 15 months
later.
From 23 to 27 May, a
delegation from the EP’s Internal
Market Committee will visit several
company headquarters (Meta, Google,
Apple and others) in Silicon Valley
to discuss in person the Digital
Services Act package, and other
digital legislation in the pipeline,
and hear the position of American
companies, start-ups, academia and
government officials.