Why is Elon Musk considering to remove X from European Union?

Elon Musk, the billionaire in charge of the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), has changed his stance again. In this turn of events, the Tesla owner is contemplating the possibility of discontinuing the service once known as Twitter in the entire European Union.

What

A news website Business Insider reported on Wednesday that the billionaire has been engaged in conversations about either discontinuing the app's availability in the area or implementing restrictions to prevent users within the European Union from accessing it.

This decision comes in response to the Digital Services Act (DSA) adopted by the European Union in August.

What is the Digital Service Act?

Enacted by the European Parliament in July 2022, the Digital Services Act (DSA) presents a set of regulations designed to enhance online safety and transparency for users within the European Union.

• These regulations apply to online platforms that provide goods, services, or content to EU citizens, including social media, e-commerce, and cloud services.

• The DSA mandates that online platforms implement measures to prevent and eliminate illegal or harmful content, such as hate speech, terrorism, child exploitation, or content promoting illicit items.

• Additionally, the DSA requires platforms to provide users with mechanisms to report such content.

• Furthermore, the Act prohibits online platforms from utilizing an individual's sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, or political beliefs as criteria for targeted advertising.

This development follows an incident on October 11 when Thierry Breton, the European Union industry chief, called on Elon Musk, the owner of X, to address the issue of disinformation on the social media platform in the aftermath of the Hamas attack on Israel. This call is made to ensure compliance with the new EU online content regulations.

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