The EU's Digital Services Act: Not Walking the Talk

Abstract

Is the European Union's (EU's) Digital Services Act (DSA) a bold reform of platform governance that needs to be scaled back? The EU's reputation for prioritising citizens' rights over companies' and market freedoms seems to suggest so. Recent criticism of EU digital policy from the United States is further fuelling this perception. However, an in‐depth study of the political debates preceding the DSA now suggests otherwise. It reveals that many options that would have enabled much more effective regulation of internet platforms, with a focus on protecting citizens and democracy, were discarded. When faced with choices involving the regulation of the digital economy, the EU has consistently opted for market freedom over more far‐reaching regulation in areas such as user tracking and profiling, platform exemption from publisher liability and tackling illegal and harmful content online. A realistic perception of the DSA suggests that this Act is merely the first step towards safeguarding democracy in the digital age and that further action is essential.