EU: Twitter must "quickly adapt" to rules on content moderation
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The Union stresses on certain rules that Twitter must adapt to... or else, sanctions.
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Thierry Breton, the EU's market commissioner
On Tuesday, the European Union said that Twitter must "quickly adapt" to its rules regarding content moderation after Elon Musk purchased Twitter for $44 billion, promising "freedom of speech" on the platform.
Thierry Breton, the EU's internal market commissioner, remarked "Be it cars or social media, any company operating in Europe needs to comply with our rules — regardless of their shareholding... Mr Musk knows this well."
Be it cars or social media, any company operating in Europe needs to comply with our rules – regardless of their shareholding.
— Thierry Breton (@ThierryBreton) April 26, 2022
Mr Musk knows this well.
He is familiar with European rules on automotive, and will quickly adapt to the Digital Services Act.#DSA
"We welcome everyone. We are open but on our conditions. At least we know what to tell him: ‘Elon, there are rules. You are welcome but these are our rules. It’s not your rules which will apply here,'" Breton told the Financial Times.
Breton added that if Twitter doesn't comply with the Union's regulations, the social media platform will be sanctioned: "6% of the revenue and, if they continue, banned from operating in Europe."
Last week, the EU's Digital Services Act was finalized "to create a safer digital space in which the fundamental rights of all users of digital services are protected."
Furthermore, the law will be addressing misinformation and will advocate for transparency, in addition to limiting particular kinds of targeted ads.
The European Union has been exerting efforts to investigate anti-trust breaches of Google and Meta in a move to probe into two Silicon Valley giants that have been working to foil competitors, asserting their hegemony over the internet.
Tech regulators have grown increasingly concerned with big tech regarding anti-trust issues and anticompetitive behavior, tax payment, privacy matters, data handling, and more.
However, most of the earlier inquisitions were aimed toward individual companies' actions, without taking into account companies that collaborated together on illegal pursuits.
Musk asserts the belief that Twitter should follow the rules of countries it operates in, rather than regulating speech.
"Is someone you don't like allowed to say something you don't like? If that is the case, then we have free speech. It's d*** annoying, but that is the sign of a healthy, functioning free speech situation," he said at the TED2022 conference.
On Monday, Musk said "free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy," adding that Twitter is "the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated."
