The European Commission announced that the “super-large online platform (VLOP)” classification criteria under the Digital Services Act (DSA) had been met because of the size of the “channel” function of the Whitsapp. According to the DSA, over 45 million users of super-large online platforms must take on additional responsibilities to protect users from illegal and harmful content.
The European Commission noted that Whatsapp was a hybrid service with a combination of private communications and online platforms. The “channel” function, which allows information publishers to disseminate information, dynamics and announcements to a wide range of Whitsapp users, falls within the definition of online platform services and therefore applies the general obligations of the EU DSA to online platforms. The private communications services provided by WhatsApp, i.e., voice messages, photos, videos, documents and voice and video calls between users, are explicitly excluded from the DSA application.
“As the business expands, we commit ourselves to continue to improve safety and integrity safeguards in the region to ensure that they meet the relevant regulatory requirements and our ongoing responsibilities to users”. The EU regulatory body requires the Whatsapp parent company, Meta, to ensure that the WhatsApp complies with the additional compliance obligations under the Digital Services Act for super-large online platforms within four months, by mid-May 2026. This includes properly assessing and effectively mitigating the types of systemic risks that their services may entail, such as violations of fundamental human rights and freedom of expression, manipulation of elections, illegal content dissemination and privacy security. The European Commission will be responsible for monitoring the compliance with the Digital Services Act by the WatsApp, and will work with the Irish Digital Services Coordinating Body, the Irish Media Commission, on related regulation. It is worth mentioning that Meta’s Facebook and Instagram had previously been identified as “super-large online platforms”.
