Raphaël Gellert & Pieter Wolters advise ministry on
countering illegal content online
There has been growing concern about the widespread use of so-called “internet intermediaries”, such as Youtube or Facebook, to distribute harmful content. With a new report commissioned by the Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy, researchers Raphaël Gellert and Pieter Wolters help the Ministry prepare for a revision of the European framework for the liability and responsibilities of internet intermediaries.
A revision of the framework is necessary to effectively combat the spread of illegal content online. In the report, Gellert and Wolters — both Radboud University scholars affiliated to the Digital Legal Lab — analyze gaps in the existing European framework and provide recommendations to address those gaps.
The report also examines the European Union’s proposal for revisions of the framework set out in the Digital Services Act (DSA). On several points, the recommendations made by Gellert and Wolters differ from the solutions proposed in the DSA.
The Dutch government will follow the recommendations of Gellert and Wolters, and use the conclusions of the report in negotiations on the DSA.
the report
The report, “The revision of the European framework for the liability and responsibilities of hosting service providers”, is available online. Click below to read it.
