WhatsApp is set to face stricter regulations in the European Union (EU) after reaching the status of “Very Large Online Platform” or “VLOP”.
The status, laid out under the EU’s Digital Services Act (DSA), is given to tech platforms that have about 45 million monthly users. In its latest transparency report, WhatsApp discloses that it has reached 46.8 average monthly users.
“We have estimated the average monthly active recipients of WhatsApp Channels in the EU by reference to the average monthly active users on that service,” says WhatsApp. “For WhatsApp Channels, we define a monthly active user as an active user of the WhatsApp mobile app who opened a Channel in the last 30 days as of the date of measurement.”
According to the platform, the information regarding the use of WhatsApp channels in the bloc has been gathered to meet the DSA requirements.
Now that WhatsApp is to be regulated under the DSA, the platform will face stricter regulations related to consumer protection, algorithms, and content moderation. WhatsApp has four months to comply with the regulations. The date for its official VLOP designation has not been announced yet, however.
Meta, the tech giant that owns WhatsApp, already has its other social networking platforms — Facebook and Instagram — designated as VLOPs. They are also currently facing probes into potential violations of the DSA by the European Commission.
Other VLOPs in the EU include Google, LinkedIn, and Amazon.
The DSA came into force on February 17, 2024.
