TechREG Chronicle^® – Digital Services Act

Dear Readers,

This edition of the Chronicle examines upcoming changes in EU platform regulation. Specifically, it focuses on the EU Digital Services Act (“DSA”) from a competition perspective. The DSA is perhaps little understood compared to its companion regulation: the Digital Markets Act (“DMA”), which explicitly aims to increase the contestability of digital markets. But the DSA, particularly via its modification of liability rules for platforms, will also have competitive effects on digital platforms. 

The DSA sets itself the laudable aim of ensuring a “safe, predictable and trusted online environment” by targeting various forms of harmful behaviors online, including the spread of illegal and harmful content, such as disinformation. Indeed, the DSA is remarkable in its ambition, as noted by Michèle Ledger & Laura Sboarina. The DSA explicitly seeks to make the internet a “safer place,” while also seeking to protect fundamental rights and enhance consumer protection. This new regulatory framework places important responsibilities on intermediary services, depending on their reach and size relating to the moderation of content. Julia Apostle, Kelly Hagedorn, Christian Schroder & Adele Harrison further detail the obligations imposed by the DSA. Despite the DSA coming into force in February 2023, many businesses do not know yet that are subject to the DSA. The authors provide an overview of the DSA, including its scope of application, key