Elon Musk is considering pulling Twitter out of Europe over the new EU compliance laws

Elon Musk is considering taking Twitter out of the European market in response to a fresh set of European Union’s internet platform regulations known Digital Services Act (DSA), Insider reported on Wednesday. The DSA is a comprehensive legislation designed to oversee online platforms and hold them accountable for the content they host on their websites.

Citing a person familiar with the company, Musk is becoming increasingly frustrated with the need to adhere to the regulations outlined in the DSA. Musk has previously hinted at a solution to this issue by proposing the removal of the app from the European region. It’s worth noting that this isn’t the first time the billionaire has suggested such a drastic step.

The move comes as Twitter faces heightened scrutiny in Europe, particularly concerning its management of harmful and toxic content. In recent weeks, Musk has been vocal about the idea that Twitter may cease to be accessible in Europe as a means to evade the new regulations introduced by the European Commission.

“Musk is increasingly frustrated with having to comply with the Digital Services Act, according to a person familiar with the company. The Tesla billionaire, who acquired Twitter, now called X, a year ago for $44 billion, has discussed simply removing the app’s availability in the region, or blocking users in the European Union from accessing it, the person said,” Insider wrote.

The DSA came into effect in August, and it mandates that large online platforms like X must establish effective and transparent systems for moderating and removing false, misleading, and harmful information. Given the rapid spread of misinformation related to the Israel-Hamas conflict on X, it’s highly likely that the platform is already in violation of the DSA.

EU Commissioner Thierry Breton recently stated that the Commission is officially “investigating X’s compliance” with the new law. They have formally requested detailed information from the platform regarding its efforts to mitigate and remove harmful or toxic information as outlined in the DSA.