Google, Meta, TikTok defeat Austria’s plan to combat hate speech

This is the best summary I could come up with:

On Thursday, a top European court ruled that Austria cannot force Google, Meta, and TikTok to pay millions in fines if they fail to delete hate speech from their popular social media platforms.

Like the European Union's recently adopted Digital Services Act, the Austrian law sought to impose fines—up to $10.69 million, Reuters reported—for failing to tackle illegal or harmful content.

However, soon after Austria tried to enforce the law, Google, Meta, and TikTok—each with EU operations based in Ireland—challenged it in an Austrian court.

Ultimately, the CJEU agreed with tech companies, deciding that the language of Austria's law was too general and abstract, potentially applying to too many platforms without distinction.

The ruling represented a major victory for platforms attempting to comply with ever-stricter user protections recently enforceable in the EU.

"We are pleased with today’s decision, which reaffirms the importance of the EU's country of origin principle," Google's spokesperson told Ars.

The original article contains 388 words, the summary contains 153 words. Saved 61%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!

3 comments

Hate speech and conspiracy theories make these companies so much money..
Because, as always, profit over people (and the public good).
This is the best summary I could come up with:
On Thursday, a top European court ruled that Austria cannot force Google, Meta, and TikTok to pay millions in fines if they fail to delete hate speech from their popular social media platforms.
Like the European Union's recently adopted Digital Services Act, the Austrian law sought to impose fines—up to $10.69 million, Reuters reported—for failing to tackle illegal or harmful content.
However, soon after Austria tried to enforce the law, Google, Meta, and TikTok—each with EU operations based in Ireland—challenged it in an Austrian court.
Ultimately, the CJEU agreed with tech companies, deciding that the language of Austria's law was too general and abstract, potentially applying to too many platforms without distinction.
The ruling represented a major victory for platforms attempting to comply with ever-stricter user protections recently enforceable in the EU.
"We are pleased with today’s decision, which reaffirms the importance of the EU's country of origin principle," Google's spokesperson told Ars.
The original article contains 388 words, the summary contains 153 words. Saved 61%. I'm a bot and I'm open source!