Elon Musk Thinking About Pulling Twitter/X Out Of Europe? Here's Why He Might Do It
Billionaire Elon Musk made headlines in 2022 when he announced he was acquiring social media platform Twitter for $44 billion.
Since completing the acquisition, Musk has implemented numerous policy and operational changes, drawing the wrath of European regulators.
What Happened: The spread of misinformation on social media platforms is a major concern of governments and government agencies, including those impacted by the increased tension from the Middle East conflict.
The European Union has targeted Twitter, now known as X, over compliance issues related to the Digital Services Act.
A new report, shared by Insider, says Musk has considered removing X completely from Europe to avoid the regulation rules and concerns.
The move would make the Twitter app no longer accessible to people in the region. Insider reports that Meta Platforms (NASDAQ: META) made a similar move in Europe for its social media platform Threads.
Europe put the Digital Services Act into effect in August. Under the new rules, online platforms have to have transparent systems in place for the information shared. The platforms also have to be able to remove anything deemed to be false, misleading or potentially harmful.
The war between Israel and Hamas has likely increased the presence of such questionable information on X.
European Union commissioner Thierry Breton announced an investigation into X’s compliance last week and formally asked for more information from the platform.
Violations of the Digital Services Act could result in fines for X. Fines can include “periodic penalty payments” of up to 6% of a company’s total revenue.
Related Link: Twitter Faces Potential Ban In Europe, Here's What Elon Musk Has To Say
Why It’s Important: The new regulations by the European Union come as Musk has eliminated several jobs at X, including some members of the company’s previous trust-and-safety team.
The platform now often relies on its Community Notes, which involves users sharing links and sources on posts that are recognized as being false or misleading. Oftentimes, the posts remain public and visible, but have a disclaimer below them.
Benzinga shared in December that the European Union threatened sanctions on Twitter after several journalists saw their accounts suspended on the social media platform.
Sources say that Musk has previously shared the idea of operating X only in the United States or only in countries where it is most popular like the United States, United Kingdom and Japan.
Data from Apptopia shows that Europe represents around 9% of X's global monthly active users.
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Posted-In: Digital Services Act Elon Musk European Union Social Media Platforms twitterNews Social Media General
