European Union (EU) countries on Thursday agreed to a common position on new rules to curb the power of US tech giants and force them to do more to monitor their platforms for illegal content.
However, they will have to work out the final details with EU lawmakers, who have proposed stricter rules and higher fines.
Frustrated by the slow pace of antitrust investigations, EU competition chief Margrethe Vestager proposed two sets of rules known as the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the Digital Services Act (DSA). directed against Amazon, Apple, the Alphabet unit Google and Facebook.
The DMA includes a list of dos and don’ts for internet gatekeepers (companies that control data and access to their platforms), reinforced by fines of up to 10% of global billing.
The DSA forces tech giants to do more to tackle illegal content on their platforms, with fines of up to 6% of global turnover for non-compliance.
The common position adopted by the EU countries follows the main points proposed by Vestager, with some adjustments, with the European Commission being the main executor of the new rules despite the initial French proposal to give more power to national control bodies.
Negotiations are expected to begin next year, and the rules are likely to be adopted in 2023.
The changes agreed by the EU countries include a new obligation for technology companies that improves the right of end users to unsubscribe from the services of the central platform and shortens the deadlines and improves the criteria for the appointment of guardians .
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