Elon Musk receives an unmistakable message from EU Commissioner Thierry Breton: “No one should be fooled: we will do the same if necessary.”
In view of Twitter’s compliance with EU law, EU Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton imposed fines and other measures. “It’s very clear: if Twitter doesn’t follow these rules, we can impose fines. And if the violations of the rules continue, we can close the platform in Europe,” Breton told several newspapers. “No one is fooled: we will do the same if necessary. That is the wish of our great democracy.”
“We’ve been following what’s been going on at Twitter closely since Elon Musk took over,” Breton said, announcing that there would be another meeting between him and Twitter boss Musk before Christmas. Digital marketplaces and digital services laws “offer powerful tools to curb the spread of lies and hate,” Breton said. “Twitter needs to meet these criteria if it wants to continue operating in the European market.”
The issue is that Twitter must implement user-transparent rules, strengthen moderation and freedom of expression, vigorously combat misinformation, and limit targeted advertising. Early next year, the commission plans to conduct a stress test at Twitter’s headquarters “that will allow Twitter to achieve compliance ahead of legal deadlines and prepare for a full and independent review as determined by the DSA.”
Musk has always stressed that what he saw as excessive restrictions on free speech on the platform should be removed. Critics worry that he could encourage hate speech and hate speech. One of the goals of the Digital Services Act is to ensure that platforms remove illegal content from their websites faster. The requirements will apply across the EU from mid-February 2024 – earlier for particularly large platforms.
(Ag./red.)