Brussels asks big online platforms about research data

The European Commission on Thursday asked most of the biggest online platforms active in Europe for information on how they are making their data available to researchers.

The formal request for information went out to 17 platforms, among them Amazon, YouTube, Facebook, TikTok and Apple's AppStore, to see how they were complying with the requirement under the EU's new Digital Services Act (DSA) that came into force last year.

The companies have until February 8 to respond.

Brussels last month opened proceedings against X, formerly Twitter, for suspected breaches of its obligations under the DSA, including on access to data for approved researchers.

"Access to data by researchers is key to ensure accountability and public scrutiny of platforms' policies," the commission said in a statement.

"Researcher access to publicly available data greatly contributes to the goals of the DSA, which is particularly important in view of upcoming events such as elections at national and EU level, as well as for an ongoing monitoring of the presence of illegal content and goods on online platforms," it said.

The DSA is part of the EU's legal arsenal aimed at regulating the online world. It is designed to crack down on illegal content online.

The DSA is a sister act to a Digital Markets Act that, when it comes into force in March, will seek to better protect European consumers and businesses by placing more onerous obligations on so-called "gatekeepers" running core internet services.

Thursday's request for information under the DSA was sent to AliExpress, Amazon Store, AppStore, Bing, Booking.com, Facebook, Google Search, Google Play, Google Maps, Google Shopping, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube and Zalando.

They are 17 of the 22 companies the EU classifies as Very Large Online Platforms (VLOPs) or Search Engines under the DSA.

X, another one on the list, is already under infringement proceedings.

The other four thus far not targeted by the DSA scrutiny are Wikipedia and three porn platforms added to the VLOP list just a month ago: Pornhub, Stripchat and XVideos.

The commission deems platforms that have at least 45 million active monthly users in the European Union -- equivalent to 10 percent of the bloc's total population -- to be VLOPs.

Pornhub, one of the popular porn sites, protested that by its count it had only 33 million average monthly viewers.

Companies found breaking the DSA's rules risk major penalties: fines of up to six percent of their global annual turnover, or even being banned from operating in Europe in the event of serious and repeated violations.