European Union: Issued European Commission request for information to Amazon on its compliance with DSA's obligations on transparency of recommender systems

On 5 July 2024, the European Commission issued a formal request for information to Amazon under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The request seeks detailed information on the measures adopted by Amazon to adhere to DSA concerning transparency of the recommender systems, the input factors, features, signals, information and metadata applied for these systems and options available to users to opt out of being profiled for the recommender systems. In addition, Amazon is required to has to provide information on the design, development, deployment, testing and maintenance of the online interface of Amazon Store's Ad Library and its risk assessment report. Amazon is required to respond by 26 July 2024, and failure to provide accurate and complete information could lead to proceedings under Article 66 of the DSA, including potential fines.