European Union: Adopted European Commission decision designating Very Large Online Platforms and Search Engines under Digital Services Act

On 25 April 2023, the European Commission designated 17 Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) and 2 Very Large Online Search Engines (VLOSEs) under the Digital Services Act (DSA), which imposes several obligations. In particular, the platforms and search engines are subject to the requirement to pursue systemic risk assessments to monitor the dissemination of illegal content, the adverse effects on fundamental rights and their impact on democratic processes, public security, gender-based violence, and the physical or mental health of users. In particular, the following companies were designated Alibaba AliExpress, Amazon Store, Apple AppStore, Booking.com, Facebook, Google Play, Google Maps, Google Shopping, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, TikTok, Twitter, Wikipedia, YouTube, Zalando, Bing and Google Search. Following their designation, large platforms must comply within four months with all the obligations set out in the DSA.