The Digital Fairness Act: one too many layers of regulation
On 6 November, the Commission criticised TikTok for the effects of its recommendation system on users’ mental health. On the basis of the Digital Services Act, it is considering requesting a change to the video feed. These conclusions, which are still preliminary, show that Brussels can already intervene in the design of platforms. Five days later, however, it presented its proposal for the Digital Fairness Act… (DFA), which aims to regulate, in particular, manipulative interfaces and ‘addictive design ’. The distinction is defensible from a technical point of view: the DSA regulates intermediary services and the risks they pose; the DFA protects consumers’ economic interests in dealings with all businesses. But the user and the consumer are often one and the same person, sitting in front of the same screen,…