EU Adds ChatGPT, Reddit, and Roblox to High-Scrutiny Platform List
The expansion of the EU's Very Large Online Platform designation signals that European regulators are moving to apply the Digital Services Act's strictest obligations to a broader set of AI and...
The European Union has added OpenAI's ChatGPT, the discussion platform Reddit, and the gaming platform Roblox to its list of services subject to the highest level of regulatory scrutiny under the Digital Services Act, according to Hespress English, reporting on an announcement made Monday.
The designation places the three services in the category of Very Large Online Platforms or Very Large Online Search Engines under the Digital Services Act, the EU's primary framework for governing digital services. Companies in this category face obligations that go beyond those applied to smaller platforms, including mandatory risk assessments, independent audits, and requirements to share data with regulators and researchers.
The European Commission stated that ChatGPT, Reddit, and Roblox will now be held to a higher standard of scrutiny and accountability in the European Union, as quoted in the Hespress English report. The Commission did not specify in that report what triggered the timing of the designation for each service.
The Digital Services Act, which entered into force in November 2022 and began applying to Very Large Online Platforms in August 2023, sets user-count thresholds as one basis for designation. Platforms reaching 45 million monthly active users in the EU are subject to the stricter tier. Whether user-count data or another criterion was the primary basis for designating these three services in this instance was not confirmed in the available source material. A formal Commission decision document would clarify the specific legal basis applied.
ChatGPT's inclusion is notable because it represents the application of the DSA's strictest rules to a generative AI product rather than a conventional social media or search service. The DSA was drafted before large language model chatbots became widely available to consumers, and regulators have been working to determine how existing legal categories apply to such tools. The EU's AI Act, a separate regulation, also imposes requirements on AI systems, and the interaction between the two frameworks for a product like ChatGPT remains a matter of active regulatory interpretation.
Reddit became a publicly traded company in March 2024, according to Reuters reporting at that time, and has expanded its international user base. Its inclusion in the EU's high-scrutiny category means it will need to establish or expand compliance infrastructure, including mechanisms for users in EU member states to contest content moderation decisions.
Roblox, a platform with a large base of younger users, has previously faced scrutiny in multiple jurisdictions over child safety. Its DSA designation will require the company to conduct and publish risk assessments related to harms that may affect minors, among other obligations.
Companies designated under the DSA's strictest tier are required to comply with the applicable obligations within four months of notification, according to the text of the regulation as published in the Official Journal of the European Union. Failure to comply can result in fines of up to six percent of a company's global annual revenue, and repeated violations can lead to temporary bans on operating in the EU.
The European Commission has already opened formal proceedings against several platforms designated earlier, including X, formerly Twitter, and TikTok. Those cases remain ongoing, according to Commission statements published on its official website prior to this report.
The addition of ChatGPT, Reddit, and Roblox brings the total number of services subject to the DSA's highest-scrutiny designation to a level not confirmed in the available source material. A full updated list is published by the European Commission on its official digital single market portal.