Ireland: Introduced Online Safety and Media Regulation Bill 2022 including the establishment of a Media Commission

On 25 January 2022, the Online Safety and Media Regulation was initiated in Seanad Éireann (Irish Parliament) for consideration for enactment. Besides aiming to strengthen online safety, the Bill also intends to achieve a number of other important legal reforms, such as transposing the Audiovisual Media Services Directive and providing for a number of legal reforms. The Bill is expected to improve the oversight mechanism of audio-visual media services in Ireland with the creation of a new Media Commission, which will replace Ireland's Broadcasting Authority. The Media Commission will be expected to fulfill the following tasks: 1) Implementation and Oversight: The Media Commission will include an Online Safety Commissioner who will be responsible for implementing the legislation's online safety provisions, as well as any future EU legislation in this area. 2) Online safety regulation: One of the Media Commission's key tasks will be the creation of Online Safety Codes, with the declared goal of reducing the availability of harmful online information. The Online Safety Codes, which will be the key mechanism for online safety regulation, will only apply to "designated" service providers. Any online service that supports user-generated material might be a prospective regulated service provider. Private chat and online storage services might both be affected. 3) Complaints mechanisms: The Media Commission would establish a system for nominated organisations to notify the Commission of any concerns they may have about specific online safety issues they have found with online service providers that fall under the Bill's scope. In due course, the Media Commission will lay out the scheme's operation, including the procedure for seeking for nomination and the topics that nominated entities may be required to notify. 4) Investigations, sanctions, enforcement: In terms of internet safety standards, the Media Commission will have strong investigative and enforcement powers, similar to those of the Data Protection Commissioner. These will include the ability to: - search, seize, and force the production or preservation of information, as well as hold 'oral hearings'; - impose penalties of up to €20 million or 10% of relevant turnover in the financial year prior to the decision's date; - appoint individuals to conduct complaints and internal complaint handling system audits; - stop non-compliance with an online safety rule, issue injunction-style orders; - access to some internet services or audio-visual on-demand media services may be restricted; - make it mandatory for a service provider to delete or block access to certain dangerous internet content.