European Parliament committee votes on stricter rules for online platforms – IT Pro – News

The European Parliament’s Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection has voted in favor of the Digital Services Act. This law should, among other things, impose stricter obligations on online services to combat illegal and harmful content.

36 of the 45 committee members voted in favor of the Digital Services Act, He writes in the European Parliament. Seven members voted against it and two members of the committee abstained. Among other things, the law should establish clear rules of responsibility and liability for providers of online platforms and so-called “broking services”. The latter include online services that revolve around, for example, the storage and dissemination of information, as well as services that provide access to a communications network containing this information. In practice, for example, the bill affects Internet providers, social media services, online marketplaces, hosting platforms, and video services.

The bill aims to “create a safer digital space in which the rights of users are protected”. For example, the law contains rules for handling the distribution of illegal goods, services, or content. The spread of misinformation and harmful content must also be prevented. The Digital Services Act includes rules regarding algorithms, risk assessments, and independent audits.

The platforms are not legally responsible for illegal content posted by users, but are therefore obligated to take action against it. As part of the law, a distinction is made between different services, large and small platforms. As the service has more users, the rules and regulations become stricter.

For example, all the various online services covered by the legislation are required to prepare transparency reports and cooperate with national authorities on orders. Online platforms will also have to report criminal offenses in the future and will have obligations with respect to online advertisements that users see. According to the law, “very large online platforms” can rely on “additional supervision and enforcement from the European Commission”. It will also require researchers to be able to access key data from major platforms. Such large platforms should establish a code of conduct. The European Union has Overview with rules It is published for various types of online services.

Now that the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee has approved the law and added some amendments, the Digital Services Act will be debated in January in plenary, with the European Parliament voting in full. If the bill is then passed, it will become a “parliamentary mandate” for negotiations with EU governments. Those negotiations should begin in the first half of 2022. This week the European Parliament, a counterpart to the law, passed the Digital Markets Act. Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee They voted at the end of last month Even in favor of the law. Tweakers wallpaper books by On new European proposals for digital legislation.