ACM: Many businesses still do not comply with European digital laws

Many providers of online services still do not have their operations in order when it comes to compliance with the requirements laid down in the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the Platform-to-Business Regulation (P2B). This has been revealed by a recent sample survey carried out by the Netherlands Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM), in which ACM took a closer look at several dozens of businesses. “There’s still a lot to do for providers of online services”, according to Martijn Snoep, Chairman of the Board of ACM.

Since 17 February 2024, providers of online services must comply with the DSA, which is a European law that contains obligations for providers of online services aimed at making the internet safer. For example, their complaint-handling systems need to be in order, and they have to act in a predictable manner when restricting users’ accounts, for example. The P2B Regulation already came into effect in 2020, and contains rules for providers of online services on transparency of general terms and conditions, the ranking of search results, and dispute settlement. In the Netherlands, ACM is the regulator-designate for both of these laws, but can only start enforcing them after the Dutch implementation laws have come into effect. They are expected to do so early next year.

Mr. Snoep adds: “The fact that, officially, we cannot enforce these laws yet, does not mean that ACM is doing nothing at the moment. The sample survey reveals that, for many providers of online services, there are still many steps to take in terms of compliance with the P2B Regulation and the DSA. We suspect that many businesses are not fully aware of all the rules they need to comply with. Information about those rules can be found on our website. We wish to send a signal to all providers of online services: make sure you get your operations in order as quickly as possible.”

Results of the sample survey

ACM carried out a sample survey among 50 different providers of online services about their level of compliance with a selection of the requirements laid down in the P2B Regulation and the DSA. With regard to the P2B Regulation, ACM examined whether the general terms and conditions of providers of online platforms are easily available for businesses. The sample survey has revealed that these are not always (easily) found or do not contain the information that providers need to give, for example, information about restricting accounts, the ranking of search results, and the internal complaint-handling system.

With regard to the DSA, ACM examined whether providers of providers of online platforms and online marketplaces have a point of contact for recipients of their service and authorities, give information in their general terms and conditions about their content moderation, and whether they offer recipients of their service the opportunity to report illegal content. The sample survey revealed that the point of contact for recipients of the service does not always meet the requirements laid down in the DSA. For example, in a number of cases, recipients of the service cannot choose themselves how they can contact their providers. In addition, information about content moderation is not always easily found in the general terms and conditions, or sometimes these do not contain all of the mandatory information. Also, with some providers, it is apparently not possible to report illegal content or the reporting system cannot be easily found.

Rules and reports

The P2B Regulation applies to online platforms and search engines that give business users the opportunity to offer products or services to consumers. The DSA applies to more online providers, namely all types of providers that communicate, store, or disclose online content of users. Small businesses are subject to fewer rules. In order to help online providers get started, ACM earlier this year published guidelines for the DSA and, in 2023, also guidelines for the P2B. Businesses and consumers can also file reports with ACM if digital platforms do not fully comply with the rules. These reports help ACM be able to take action effectively once it is fully authorized to do so.