The European Commission has warned Twitter Inc (NYSE:TWTR)’s new owner Elon Musk that the social media platform will be banned in the European Union if it fails to meet the bloc’s strict content moderation standards, according to a report by the Financial Times.
Per the report, which cited people with knowledge of the conversation, the threat was handed down during a call between Musk and the European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton on Wednesday.
Failure to comply with the Digital Services Act (DSA), new legislation that governs digital services in the EU, could see Twitter banned or face a fine of up to 6% of its global turnover, the report said.
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Musk was told that Twitter needed to adhere to specific rules, including “ditching an ‘arbitrary’ approach to reinstating banned users, pursuing disinformation ‘aggressively,’ and agreeing to an ‘extensive independent audit’ of the platform by next year,” the Financial Times reported.
Musk reportedly said repeatedly that he thought the DSA was "very sensible," and following the meeting, Breton tweeted that he welcomed Musk’s intent to get Twitter 2.0 ready for the DSA.
I welcome @elonmusk's intent to get Twitter 2.0 ready for the #DSA????????
Huge work ahead still — as Twitter will have to implement transparent user policies, significantly reinforce content moderation and tackle disinformation.
Looking forward to seeing progress in all these areas. pic.twitter.com/Nc7sGlb9YL
— Thierry Breton (@ThierryBreton) November 30, 2022
“I am pleased to hear that he has read it carefully and considers it as a sensible approach to implement on a worldwide basis,” he said in the tweet, which was also posted on Twitter's up-and-coming rival Mastodon that has gained popularity since Musk's takeover of Twitter.
“But let’s also be clear that there is still huge work ahead, as Twitter will have to implement transparent user policies, significantly reinforce content moderation and protect freedom of speech, tackle disinformation with resolve, and limit targeted advertising."
At the time of writing, Musk had not responded publicly to the reported threat, but on Wednesday re-tweeted a link to a blog post by Twitter regarding its ongoing commitment to providing a safe, inclusive, entertaining and informative experience for all users.
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