The EU is launching an investigation into whether TikTok has violated online content regulations, particularly those relating to the safety of children.
The European Commission has officially initiated proceedings against a Chinese-owned short video platform for potential violations of the Digital Services Act (DSA).
The investigation is focusing on areas such as safeguarding minors, keeping records of advertising content, and determining if algorithms are leading users to harmful content.
Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for the Internal Market, stated that child safety is the “primary enforcement priority” under the DSA. The investigation particularly focuses on age verification and default privacy settings for children’s accounts.
In April last year, TikTok was fined €345 million in Ireland for violating EU data law in its handling of children’s accounts. Additionally, the UK Information Commissioner fined the company £12.7 million for unlawfully processing data from children under 13.
Companies that violate the DSA can face fines of up to 6% of their global turnover. TikTok is owned by Chinese technology company ByteDance.
TikTok has stated that it is committed to working with experts and the industry to ensure the safety of young people on its platform and is eager to brief the European Commission on its efforts.
The commission is also examining alleged deficiencies in TikTok’s provision of publicly available data to researchers and its compliance with requirements to establish a database of ads shown on the platform.
A deadline for the investigation has not been set and will depend on factors such as the complexity of the case and the degree of cooperation from the companies being investigated.
This investigation of TikTok is the DSA’s second, following a December 2021 formal investigation into Elon Musk’s social media platform X, which was previously known as Twitter. The case against X focuses on failure to block illegal content and inadequate measures against disinformation.
Apple is reportedly facing a substantial fine from the EU for its conduct in the music streaming app market. The European Commission is investigating whether US tech companies blocked music distributors from informing users about cheaper subscription options outside of their own app stores.
According to the Financial Times, the city of Brussels plans to fine Apple 500 million euros, marking a significant decision following years of complaints from companies offering services through iPhone apps.
Apple was previously fined 1.1 billion euros by France in 2020 for anti-competitive agreements with two wholesalers, a fine that was later reduced by an appeals court.
Big technology companies like Apple and Google have come under increased scrutiny due to competitive concerns. Google is appealing against fines of more than 8 billion euros imposed by the EU in three separate competition investigations.
Apple has successfully defended against a lawsuit by Fortnite developer Epic Games alleging that its app store was an illegal monopoly. In December, Epic won a similar lawsuit against Google.
Last month, Apple announced that it would allow EU customers to download apps without using its own app store, in response to the EU’s digital market law.
Source: www.theguardian.com
