The three platforms will have four months to comply with the stricter regulations of the Digital Services Act.
The European Union is tightening its grip on ChatGPT, Reddit and Roblox. The European Commission (EC) has designated ChatGPT as a “very large online search engine”, and Reddit and Roblox as “very large online platforms”. These three platforms have each crossed the threshold of at least 45 million average monthly users in the European Union, triggering the designations which carry “the strictest rules” under the Digital Services Act (DSA).
“These new designations mean that ChatGPT, Reddit and Roblox will now be subject to higher standards of oversight and accountability within the European Union, in line with their significant impact on our citizens and society,” said Henna Virkkunen, EC Executive Vice-President for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy, in a press release.
The “very large” designation signifies stricter enforcement of the services and algorithmic systems of ChatGPT, Reddit, and Roblox, particularly regarding how they may spread illegal content, cause negative effects on minors, and impact electoral processes. The new label also means that the EC will more closely supervise these platforms’ compliance with the DSA, including requiring data sharing with the commission and authorities, annual reviews by independent auditors, and allowing researchers to access a platform’s data in certain cases.
With the addition of ChatGPT, Reddit and Roblox, the EC now designates 28 services as very large online platforms or search engines under the DSA. Earlier this year, the EU hit WhatsApp with the same designation as Facebook and Instagram. We’ve reached out to OpenAI, Reddit, and Roblox for comment on the change and will update the story when we receive a response.
