Amazon Disputes European Union Regulations for Big Digital Platforms
Amazon has announced that it has initiated a legal dispute in a European Union court against the classification of being a very large online platform under strict new regulations by Brussels. In April, the European Commission identified 19 online companies, including Amazon, Twitter, TikTok, Apple, Google, Meta, and Microsoft, as meeting the requirements for this designation.
From August 25, they must comply with the rules of the European Union’s new Digital Services Act (DSA), which aims to curb illegal online content and disinformation. One requirement is that they undergo an annual independent audit of the measures platforms and search engines use to combat disinformation, hate speech and fakes.
The second is that they open up their algorithms to the commission and offer approved researchers access to their data. They must also conduct risk analyzes for illegal content on their services and come up with mitigating measures.
Those appearing in the list of very large online platforms or search engines in the EU reached or exceeded the DSA threshold of 45 million active monthly users in Europe.
But an Amazon spokesman, contacted by AFP, said “DSA was designed to address the systemic risks posed by very large companies whose main revenue comes from advertising and which disseminate speech and information”.
While Amazon agreed with the goal, it argued that “Amazon does not fit this description” because its revenue comes from retail sales, not advertising, and “therefore (we) should not be designated” as a very large online platform (VLOP). .
“If the VLOP designation were to apply to Amazon and not to other large retailers across the EU, Amazon would be unfairly singled out and faced with burdensome administrative obligations that would not benefit EU consumers,” the spokesperson said.
The US company says it has already implemented measures to protect customers from illegal activities, regardless of EU obligations. Those measures would cost it $1.2 billion in 2022, it said. Amazon’s legal challenge follows last month’s challenge by German online retailer Zalando over its VLOP designation.
