The EU’s new Digital Services Act looks to severely limit the power of internet giants

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The European Parliament has just made a huge step towards major regulation of tech giants on the internet. The EU’s legislative body has just voted in favor of the new Digital Services Act (DSA). The bill hopes to slow down some of the big internet companies and their overall power.

The DSA received overwhelming support from Members of the European Parliament (MEPs). MEPs voted 530 for with only 78 against the bill.

The bill is aimed specifically at major internet companies, like Google and Amazon, many of which come from the United States. The bill, if passed, would greatly limit these internet companies’ ability to operate their businesses in the EU.

The DSA includes a proposal that requires internet platforms to remove illegal content “without undue delay.” The bill also includes several other proposals for “very large online platforms,” and even includes an exemption from certain DSA obligations for “micro and small enterprises.”

One of the major themes in the DSA involves targeting advertising. The bill requires that platforms give clear and precise information about the data that it is collecting. It also includes a section that outright outlaws the data collection of minors for targeted ads.

MEPs say that “refusing consent shall be no more difficult or time-consuming to the recipient than giving consent,” meaning that it must be simple and easy to decline data tracking. When a user declines tracking on a platform, the bill says the platform must offer other options to access the platform, like “options based on tracking-free advertising.”

The DSA also includes several other key points that you can find here. The bill now heads to the Council, where it will be further discussed. If voted into law, this bill has the potential to cause a major shakeup in how tech and internet giants operate in the EU.

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