Digital Services Act: Commission welcomes political agreement on rules ensuring a safe and accountable online environment

The Commission welcomes the swift political agreement reached today between the European

Parliament and EU Member States on the proposal on the Digital Services Act (DSA), proposed by

the Commission in December 2020. The DSA sets out an unprecedented new standard for the

accountability of online platforms regarding illegal and harmful content. It will provide better

protection for internet users and their fundamental rights, as well as define a single set of rules in

the internal market, helping smaller platforms to scale up.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said: “Today's agreement on the Digital

Services Act is historic, both in terms of speed and of substance. The DSA will upgrade the groundrules

for all online services in the EU. It will ensure that the online environment remains a safe

space, safeguarding freedom of expression and opportunities for digital businesses. It gives practical

effect to the principle that what is illegal offline, should be illegal online. The greater the size, the

greater the responsibilities of online platforms. Today's agreement – complementing the political

agreement on the Digital Markets Act last month – sends a strong signal: to all Europeans, to all EU

businesses, and to our international counterparts.”

Executive Vice-President for a Europe Fit for the Digital Age, Margrethe Vestager, added: “With the

DSA we help create a safe and accountable online environment. Platforms should be transparent

about their content moderation decisions, prevent dangerous disinformation from going viral and

avoid unsafe products being offered on market places. With today's agreement we ensure that

platforms are held accountable for the risks their services can pose to society and citizens.”

Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton further commented: “With the DSA, the time of

big online platforms behaving like they are “too big to care” is coming to an end. The DSA is setting

clear, harmonised obligations for platforms – proportionate to size, impact and risk. It entrusts the

Commission with supervising very large platforms, including the possibility to impose effective and

dissuasive sanctions of up to 6% of global turnover or even a ban on operating in the EU single

market in case of repeated serious breaches. EU institutions have worked hand in hand in record

time, with determination and ambition to protect our citizens online.”

 

A new framework for digital services

The new framework under the DSA is founded on European values, including the respect of human

rights, freedom, democracy, equality and the rule of law. It will rebalance the rights and

responsibilities of users, online intermediaries, including online platforms as well as very large online

platforms, and public authorities.

The DSA contains EU-wide due diligence obligations that will apply to all digital services that connect

consumers to goods, services, or content, including new procedures for faster removal of illegal

content as well as comprehensive protection for users' fundamental rights online.

In scope of the DSA are various online intermediary services. Their obligations under the DSA

depend on their role, size, and impact on the online ecosystem. These online intermediary services

include:

• Intermediary services offering network infrastructure: Internet access providers, domain name

registrars;

• Hosting services such as cloud computing and webhosting services;
• Very large online search engines with more than 10% of the 450 million consumers in the EU,

and therefore, more responsibility in curbing illegal content online;

• Online platforms bringing together sellers and consumers such as online marketplaces, app

stores, collaborative economy platforms and social media platforms;

• Very large online platforms, with a reach of more than 10% of the 450 million consumers in

the EU, which could pose particular risks in the dissemination of illegal content and societal

harms.

Concretely, the DSA contains:

• Measures to counter illegal goods, services or content online, such as:
• a mechanism for users to easily flag such content and for platforms to cooperate with socalled

‘trusted flaggers';

• new obligations on traceability of business users in online market places;
• New measures to empower users and civil society, including:
• the possibility to challenge platforms' content moderation decisions and seek redress,
• either via an out-of-court dispute mechanism or judicial redress;
• provision of access to vetted researchers to the key data of the largest platforms and

provision of access to NGOs as regards access to public data, to provide more insight

into how online risks evolve;

• transparency measures for online platforms on a variety of issues, including on the

algorithms used for recommending content or products to users;

• Measures to assess and mitigate risks, such as:
• obligations for very large platforms and very large online search engines to take riskbased

action to prevent the misuse of their systems and undergo independent audits of

their risk management systems;

• Mechanisms to adapt swiftly and efficiently in reaction to crises affecting public security

or public health;

• New safeguards for the protection of minors and limits on the use of sensitive personal

data for targeted advertising.

• Enhanced supervision and enforcement by the Commission when it comes to very large online

platforms. The supervisory and enforcement framework also confirms important role for the

independent Digital Services Coordinators and Board for Digital Services.

Next Steps

The political agreement reached by the European Parliament and the Council is now subject to formal

approval by the two co-legislators. Once adopted, the DSA will be directly applicable across the EU

and will apply fifteen months or from 1 January 2024, whichever later, after entry into force. As

regards the very large online platforms and very large online search engines the DSA will apply from

an earlier date, that is four months after their designation.

Background

The Commission made its proposal on the Digital Services Act on 15 December 2020, together with

the proposal for the Digital Markets Act, on which the European Parliament and Council reached a

political agreement on 22 March 2022, an updated Q&A document is available here. The political

agreements on these two files will work together to ensure a safe, open and fair online environment

in the EU.

For More Information

Fact page on the Commission's proposal on the Digital Services Act

Digital Services Act: Questions and answers on the Commission proposal

IP/22/2545

Press contacts:

Johannes BAHRKE (+32 2 295 86 15)

Charles MANOURY (+32 2 291 33 91)

General public inquiries: Europe Direct by phone 00 800 67 89 10 11 or by email