this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2024
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The tech mogul’s platform is the first to get hit with charges under new EU social media law.

The European Union is calling Elon Musk to order over how he turned social media site X into a haven for disinformation and illegal content.

The EU Commission on Friday formally charged X for failing to respect EU social media law. The platform could face a sweeping multi-million euro fine in a pioneering case under the bloc's new Digital Services Act (DSA), a law to clamp down on toxic and illegal online content and algorithms

Musk's X has been in Brussels' crosshairs ever since the billionaire took over the company, formerly known as Twitter, in 2022. X has been accused of letting disinformation and illegal hate speech run wild, roll out misleading authentication features and blocking external researchers from tools to scrutinize how malicious content on the platforms spreads

The European Commission oversees X and two dozens of the world's largest online platforms including Facebook, YouTube and others. The EU executive's probe into Musk's firm opened in December 2023 and was the first formal investigation. Friday's charges are the first-ever under the DSA. 

Infringements of the DSA could lead to fines of up to 6 percent of a X’s global revenue.

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[–] [email protected] 61 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (6 children)

What if Musk pulls Twitter out of the EU? What fraction of their revenue is that, I wonder?

Normally this would be too crazy to even consider, but... this is Musk we're talking about. I'm sure he hates the EU government's guts already. And that totally sounds like an impulse decision he would make.

[–] [email protected] 50 points 3 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 9 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Hmm..EU citizens would be winning, but who else?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Musk could keep doing whatever it is he's doing right now.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 3 months ago (1 children)

He could not though - losing the EU would be a win for him how?

[–] [email protected] 4 points 3 months ago

Musk could keep doing whatever it is he's doing right now.

[–] [email protected] 31 points 3 months ago (1 children)

I think his main motivation for continuing to run the company is to spread his agenda. If it only costs him a small percent of revenue to keep pushing Nazi taking points, thenbi think he'll just pay the fines.

[–] [email protected] 17 points 3 months ago (1 children)

hehe, double the fines every day of noncompliance. I heard you like fines, so I added some fines on your fines and some fines on top of those to go with your fines. Don't fuck with EU regulators.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago) (2 children)

Even without doubling, fines on a regular basis can hurt. Norway imposed $100k fine on FB on a daily basis, and FB is scrambling to do something about it, especially before other countries in the EU follow suit

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago (2 children)

100k isn't that much. However, if the EU decides to go for the total 6% of global revenue it will cost Musk a shitload of money.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 3 months ago (1 children)

100k is a lot when you consider how small Norway's population is. If you extend that same ratio per capita to the rest of the EU, FB would go broke.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

OK, you got a point there.

[–] [email protected] 3 points 3 months ago

@cows_are_underrated @world Does X have a high turnover of anything (except staff)?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 3 months ago (1 children)

You raise an interesting point, but Norway isn't in the EU, is it?

[–] [email protected] 0 points 3 months ago

For many intents and purposes, Norway uses the same laws and regulations the EU does. In this particular case, it's just about setting an example

[–] [email protected] 30 points 3 months ago

As someone who works in the field, DSA-like regulation is coming to many countries over the next couple years. We also have regulations on political ads that are similar to DSA already in many countries already. Mega platforms like X have little choice but to get compliant

[–] [email protected] 21 points 3 months ago (2 children)

We can only hope he does. More people move over to mastodon with large companies running their own instances in the ecosystem.

This would allow for a federated broadcast system similar to how Twitter is now used, but if mastodon gets critical mass and governments start using it like they do Vichy Twitter it would be great news.

If that leads to some extra government grants for the further development of mastodon and the fediverse... Possibly even under the guise of standing up to big american tech.. we all win.

But if he does, he signed the Death warrant of his own platform. A lot of governments and mega corps are there because of users. Governments will all need to replace it immediately if they find out their main broadcasting platform could be turned off tomorrow.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago

You'd be hard-pressed to find a government institution in the EU above the municipal level which doesn't have a mastodon server or account on some government server.

[–] [email protected] 11 points 3 months ago (1 children)

A lot of companies that loudly "pulled out of Russia" are still working in Russia.

[–] [email protected] 7 points 3 months ago

Twitter's business is advertising. If they shun the EU, EU companies just aren't allowed to buy ads without getting in hot water themselves.

[–] [email protected] 6 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

He always complies with everything e.g. Turkey and many authoritarian governments want without a peep. The EU (and an even more shocking example: Brazil) are the only chumps who let him troll with impunity. Time to change that.