How Europe’s new digital law will change the Internet

MOST PEOPLE Think of Facebook as a social network and Google as a search engine. But tech enthusiasts think of these services as “platforms”: large online territories that users inhabit. The companies that run them are largely free to make the rules in these digital venues. But on August 25, they will lose much of this sovereignty when the provisions of the European Union’s Digital Services Act (DSA) is put into operation. What does this mean for Internet users—not just in Europe but around the world?

With DSA and its sister law, the Digital Markets Act, will also be phased in over the coming months, EU aims to change the surveillance of major online platforms. Until now, regulators have tried to fix problems—such as the spread of misinformation and violations of antitrust rules—after the fact. The new laws aim to help them stay ahead of the game by setting clear rules that online platforms must follow.

The DSA will apply to all online businesses, but larger services, defined as those with more than 45 million users in EU, will be subject to additional rules. In April, the European Commission, EUexecutive branch of, has designated 19 of these “very large online platforms” (FALL DOWN with a thuds) and “very large online search engines”. This group includes the usual suspects, such as Facebook and Google, but also more surprising ones, such as Wikipedia, a free online encyclopedia, and Zalando, a commerce site European electronics.

Most web users will hardly notice some of the changes these companies will have to make. Platforms will have to share more information with regulators about how they moderate content, decide what users see and use artificial intelligence. They must allow vetted researchers and auditing firms to review internal data to check they are complying with the rules.

Other changes will be more obvious. Platforms must now make it easy for users to report content they believe is illegal, and will be required to quickly remove that content if it violates the law. They must also notify users whether their content has been removed or hidden and explain why. Targeted ads will no longer be allowed if they are based on sensitive personal data such as religion and sexual orientation. Using personal data to show advertising to children and teenagers will also be prohibited.

Companies have begun to adjust their services. Meta, the company that runs Facebook, is developing tools that will let users know when the visibility of their posts is being limited (and give them a chance to complain). On Amazon, a major online retailer, European buyers will soon be able to flag potentially illegal products. And on TikTok, a social media platform, users will have the option to watch videos based on the popularity of the content in their area, rather than what they have previously viewed, to minimize data loss. Personal data is collected.

Such changes will make online platforms safer and better—but much will depend on how DSA be put into practice. Although the commission has promised to hire more than 200 people to monitor compliance, enforcing the law could be difficult. Companies will inevitably make decisions they don’t like before the Court of Justice of the European Union: Zalando has challenged its classification as a company FALL DOWN with a thud. The penalties for non-compliance with the act are certainly high. The fine could be up to 6% of annual global revenue, equivalent to about $7 billion in Meta’s case.

The EUThe most recent major piece of digital law, the General Data Protection Regulation, an ambitious privacy law, has been an international success. Since GDPR effective in 2018, major tech companies adopted its rules globally to save costs. (It has also become a model for other data privacy laws around the world.) But tech giants may resist doing the same with DSA: the cost of losing sovereignty over their digital territories everywhere, is a price they may not be willing to pay. The repetition of the “Brussels effect”, accordingly EU regulators set a global standard, which is far from guaranteed. ■