In January, the European Parliament moved towards approving the Digital Services Act for Europe. This legislation, also known as the DSA , seeks, above all, to define clear and concise responsibilities for digital platforms, such as social networks.
Now, a further step has been taken, with the reaching of an agreement between the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Member States of the European Union , in relation to the Digital Services Act, proposed in December 2020. Its purpose is to put an end to illegal content disseminated on the Internet and stop the spread of fake news .
YouTube and Google , which will have to moderate the content they host. The Digital Services Act will apply to all online intermediaries operating in the European Union, particularly large companies such as those mentioned above.
The political agreement is now subject to formal approval by the two co-legislators . Once approved, the austria number data DSA will be applicable across the European Union and will apply fifteen months or from 1 January 2024. For large digital platforms and large search engines it will come earlier, four months after their designation.
What the Digital Services Act means for digital platforms
" It sets an unprecedented new standard for online platforms' liability for illegal and harmful content . It will provide better protection for internet users and their fundamental rights, as well as defining a single set of rules in the market, helping smaller platforms to scale up," the EU explains.
Ursula von der Leyen , President of the European Commission, describes this agreement as “historic”. “It will ensure that the online environment remains a safe space, safeguarding freedom of expression and opportunities for digital businesses. It puts into effect the principle that what is illegal offline, should be illegal online. The larger the size, the greater the responsibilities of online platforms ”, she highlights.
It also emphasises that it complements the political agreement on the Digital Markets Act last month. Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton comments that the era of large companies "behaving as if they were 'too big to care'" is over.
“ The DSA sets out clear and harmonised obligations for platforms, based on their size, impact and risk . It entrusts the Commission with the supervision of very large platforms, including the possibility of imposing effective and dissuasive sanctions of up to 6% of global turnover or even a ban on operating in the EU single market in the event of repeated serious infringements,” he explains.