#FollowTheMoney requested access to an unredacted version of #X’s first #DigitalServicesAct risk report from the @European Commission – a request that the EU executive denied. After the request, the Commission updated its internal rules to generally presume such reports to be confidential. The European #Ombudsman found this to be “unreasonable” and that it amounted to maladministration.

Follow the Money - Platform for investigative journalism

Watchdog slams EU executive for hiding user risks on Elon Musk’s X

Follow the Money - Platform for investigative journalism

I just heard another renown professor argue #Mastodon is too hard, even they failed. Choosing a server is simply too difficult. And I'm wondering: how the heck does everybody have an email address? #decentralisation #federation

When people say "#Mastodon is like early Twitter," they often refer to the absence of algorithmic amplification & ads or the functionality set. But what makes it like early #Twitter in my opinion, isn't that. It's that the #Fediverse enables you to easily connect with real, awesome humans from anywhere: makers, celebrities, community leaders, top experts in their fields. Just tag them with an honest post and you'll have wonderful interactions such as this one. 🤩

Mastodon

Magical Cat (@koteisaev@mastodon.online)

I thinking about one thing that #fediverse self-hosting landscape lacks. Well it is not only about Fediverse per se. I dream to have something like...

Tech firms are spending more than ever on #lobbying the #EU amid mounting opposition to the bloc’s digital rules, according to @npub19gkv...xllu. The 733 digital #industry groups registered in #Brussels now spend €151 million a year pushing their interests, up from €113 million 2 years ago. Meta is the overall largest lobby spender in the EU (€10 million). There are now an estimated 890 lobbyists working to shape the tech agenda, up from 699 in 2023.

Corporate Europe Observatory

Big Tech lobby budgets hit record levels | Corporate Europe Observatory

New figures show that the digital industry as a whole is now spending €151 million a year on lobbying the EU, a major increase to what was alread...

“We are not a fining machine,” said a @European Commission official, when asked about the timeline for making decisions on ongoing #DSA cases. Well, then maybe you should not have put yourselves forward as lead enforcement authority under the #DigitalServicesAct. With great power comes great responsibility.

What a timing: while I'm sitting at a #CloudAbolition workshop, #AWS takes down major centralised services like #Signal, #WhatsApp and #Teams. People continue happily texting me on @npub1m9z3...whzq though 💚 :fedi:

Since it has gotten some beating recently (in particular from #Apple fanboys), I've written something about the #DigitalMarketsAct for @EDRi and how things are going at this front:

European Digital Rights (EDRi)

The DMA is a success, it should be strengthened and expanded - European Digital Rights (EDRi)

Despite its somewhat disappointing enforcement so far, the EU’s Digital Market Act has become a global role model for modern antitrust policy.

#DMA #competition #antitrust #bigtech #marketpower

Mmmm, how much I love high-speed #rail travel. #trains

"Asking enslaved people if they actually want to work the plantations for free would kill the cotton industry." -- Nick Clegg #AI #AIcon #exploitation #BigTech

Yay looks like the @European Commission and #EDPB have taken a rather clear joint position: #PayOrConsent is unlawful for gatekeepers under #DMA and #GDPR. Hello #Meta 👋 📄.pdf #privacy #DataProtection #gatekeepers #PayorOK