08 April 2024
To Define Is Just to Define
Social media allows users to share content worldwide. This also enables users to distribute illegal content. The laws of the EU Member States vary greatly when it comes to what content they consider to be illegal, especially regarding hate speech. Thus, it is important which national law applies in cross-border cases concerning online content. Ultimately, this question is closely linked to the broader reshuffling of power in the digital sphere: will it be actual ‘law’ that platforms enforce online or norms made by platforms themselves? So far, the law of 27 Member States plus the EU itself remains utterly chaotic compared to the more uniform Terms of Service (ToS) of the internet giants. Continue reading >>
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19 July 2023
More than Formal Recognition?
The Commission’s proposal for a Platform Work Directive contains a number of provisions recognising collective labour rights for platform workers, mostly revolving around information and consultation rights for workers’ representatives. This suggests that, at least in principle, extending workplace representation and industrial relation practices to the platform economy is part of the Commission’s policy agenda. However, this blogpost argues that even if certain collective labour rights are formally recognised, the proposed directive does not offer adequate basis for their effective exercise. Trade union organising, collective bargaining and workplace democracy do not find sufficient support in the directive, thus limiting their development within the platform economy. Continue reading >>
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24 May 2023
Data After Life
Contract law in Europe currently has little grasp on the balancing of interests of social media users, their heirs, platforms, and society at large, which means that platforms play a key role in determining how digital legacies are handled. A human rights perspective can offer starting points for reforms that do more justice to the protection of digital identities of social media users. Continue reading >>24 May 2023
Monetising Harmful Content on Social Media
The possibility to profit from the dissemination of harmful content triggering views, engagement, and ultimately monetisation does not only concern the contractual relationship between social media and influencers, but also affects how other users enjoy digital spaces. The monetisation of harmful content by influencers should be a trigger, first, to expand the role of consumer law as a form of content regulation fostering transparency and, second, to propose a new regulatory approach to mitigate the imbalance of powers between influencers and users in social media spaces. Continue reading >>
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23 May 2023
Rethinking the Regulation of Financial Influencers
The growth of social media has led to an unprecedented rise in financial influencers, so-called finfluencers, who share investment ideas and opinions with a global audience, even if they are not qualified or licensed to provide financial advice. This can be particularly dangerous for retail investors with low levels of financial literacy. The regulation of financial influencers is a complex and multifaceted issue that demands a comprehensive approach; the current regulatory framework may not be adequate. Continue reading >>
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23 May 2023
Pay to Play
The rise of subscription-based business models in social media is part of a broader trend that can be observed in many industries. Against this background, it is necessary to adapt European consumer law to the new risks of the subscription economy.However, it is not enough to give consumers rights on paper. Nor is it sufficient to inform consumers about their rights in the small print. Effective consumer protection in digital markets requires a user interface design that enables consumers to exercise their rights with a simple click. Continue reading >>
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22 May 2023
The Shape of Personalisation to Come
While targeted advertising is still a money-making machine for social media platforms, its motor has begun to sputter. However, with artificial intelligence, the potential is even greater for companies to discover and exploit biases and vulnerabilities in consumers that they themselves may not be aware of. The point of this dive into economic engineering of personalised environments on digital platforms is to highlight the intentional creation of algorithmically curated choice sets for consumers. How can the law ensure their fairness? Continue reading >>22 May 2023
A Non-Binary Approach to Platform-to-Business Transactions
Social media is a disruptive technology that has challenged fundamental distinctions in contract law, as social media contracts don't adequately reflect complex relationships between platforms, businesses, and consumers, among others. Contract law has the potential for greater sensitivity to contract classifications because different types of contractual relations invoke different values and trade-offs. Courts can better posit them in the spectrum between business and consumer contracts, while securing business users‘ unique interests Continue reading >>
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19 May 2023
The Contractual Rights and Obligations of Prosumers on Social Media Platforms
How can contract law contribute to a fair balance between the rights of prosumers and social media platforms? This contribution assesses the values that contract law should reflect, proposing the recognition of use value alongside the exchange value of products on the market. It then considers which mechanisms in contract law could be employed to do justice to both values. Continue reading >>
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19 May 2023
Digesting the (Not So) Free Lunches of Social Media
It has become common wisdom that “there is no such thing as free lunch.” Social media shows us daily how true this observation remains until today. The ‘conventional’ business model of these platforms focuses on data exploitation, and, increasingly, ‘freemium’ models. While it is obviously worthwhile to explore objectionable business practices in e-commerce and on social media, as 'freemium' models gain traction, this contribution suggests that the discourse on ‘dark patterns’ is somewhat sketchy and incomplete – and in need of more specificity. Continue reading >>
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