© Reuters. FILE PHOTO: European Union flags fly outside the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium November 8, 2023. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) -The European Union added three adult content companies – Pornhub, Stripchat and XVideos – to its list of firms subject to stringent regulations under new online content rules, the bloc’s industry chief Thierry Breton said on Wednesday.
The new rules, known as the Digital Services Act (DSA), require companies to conduct risk management, undergo external and independent auditing, and share data with authorities and researchers.
In April the EU designated five Alphabet (NASDAQ:) subsidiaries, two Meta Platforms units, two Microsoft (NASDAQ:) businesses, X and Alibaba (NYSE:)’s AliExpress among 19 companies under the rules.
Such designated companies will have to do more to tackle disinformation, give more protection and choice to users and ensure stronger protection for children or risk fines of as much as 6% of their global turnover.
“Pornhub, Stripchat and XVideos meet the user thresholds to fall under stricter #DSA obligations,” Breton said. “Creating a safer online environment for our children is an enforcement priority under the DSA.”
In a statement, Canada-based Pornhub said it had 33 million average monthly recipients of the service in the European Union by July 31, calculated over the past six months.
DSA covers companies with more than 45 million users as very large online platforms.
The designation can be based not only on the user numbers reported by the company, but also on information from third parties or alternative sources, a senior Commission official said.
The Commission can make the designation if it has reasonable certainty that such companies meet the threshold, added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
