EU court upholds Amazon's designation as "very large online platform"

Alsharq Tribune-M.Essam 

The General Court of the European Union (EU) on Wednesday rejected Amazon's challenge to the European Commission's decision designating its Amazon Store as a "very large online platform," confirming that the U.S. e-commerce giant must comply with EU digital regulations.

According to the EU's Digital Services Act, tech platforms with the number of EU users exceeding 45 million should perform specific obligations, including tackling illegal and harmful content when they are designated as "very large online platforms" or "very large online search engines."

In 2023, Amazon appealed to the Court to overturn the designation, arguing that the obligations imposed infringed rights protected by the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, including the freedom to conduct business, property rights, and freedom of expression.

The Court dismissed the action, noting that EU lawmakers considered that very large online platforms could pose systemic risks to society. Obligations imposed on such platforms, such as requiring recommendation systems that do not rely on user profiling and granting researchers access to certain data, are intended to prevent those risks.

Amazon has around two months to appeal the ruling, said the Court.