The EU moves to kill infinite scrolling (politico.eu)

Article summary

The European Commission is taking action against TikTok, demanding changes to its design to reduce addictiveness, including disabling infinite scrolling and setting strict screen time breaks. This move may set new design standards for social media platforms worldwide. The Commission's decision is based on its Digital Services Act, which requires platforms to assess and mitigate risks to users. TikTok can defend its practices and review the evidence, but may face fines up to 6 percent of its annual global revenue if it fails to comply.

Main themes

• Social media regulation
• Addictive design
• EU Digital Services Act
• Online user protection
• Platform design standards

What commenters say

• The EU's move to regulate social media design is a necessary step to protect users from addictive and harmful features.
• The cookie banner requirement is an example of a poorly implemented regulation that prioritizes legal compliance over user experience.
• Websites should not be forced to display cookie banners if they only use strictly necessary cookies, and instead, users should have more control over their cookie settings.
• The GDPR has made the web worse for users due to the proliferation of annoying cookie banners, and it may be time to reconsider or refine the regulation.
• The EU's regulatory approach to online issues often prioritizes legal caution over technical expertise, leading to suboptimal solutions.
• A better approach to regulating online tracking would be to implement browser-side opt-out settings, rather than relying on website-level cookie banners.
• The responsibility for managing cookies and online tracking should lie with the browser, not the website, and regulations should reflect this.
• The EU's actions against TikTok may set a precedent for other social media platforms, and could lead to a more nuanced understanding of what constitutes 'addictive' design.