Europe fines X €120m over breaches of Digital Markets and Digital Services Acts
The European Commission (EC) is continuing its tough stance against major tech companies with a fine over €120 million given to Elon Musk-owned X. Despite opposition from Washington, the announced fine against X remains in place.
Three months after Google was hit with a fine of €2.95 billion, the site formerly known as Twitter ad its turn to be sanctioned for violating European rules on online content.
The fine is being imposed under two measures: the Digital Markets Act (DMA) – intended to curb the power of tech giants – and the Digital Services Act (DSA), which obliges platforms to act more firmly against illegal and harmful content.
The Tump administration – a well known advocate for Big Tech and Musk’s companies – responded sharply: it linked a possible reduction in steel import tariffs to a softening of digital rules and instructed diplomats to lobby intensively against the new European laws.
Musk himself compared the EU to Nazi Germany and has suspended the European Commission’s advertising account, claiming the Commission used it in a “misleading” way. He also called for the dissolution of the EU, much to the delight of his following.
According to the EU competition chief Teresa Ribera competition law is not a bargaining chip and X is unlikely to escape the fine.
In the meantime, a new investigation into Meta is already under way, partly because of AI features in WhatsApp. The outcomes of these investigations, and the decision on Google’s proposal on advertising technology, are seen as important tests of the EU’s resolve.
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