Facebook (META -1.16%) was put on notice Monday the social media giant could face more regulation in Europe if it doesn't reign its current business practices.
During a live stream debate between Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and European Union industry chief Thierry Breton, which was covered by Bloomberg News, the EU commissioner warned if Facebook doesn’t control posts being shared on its platform amid the COVID-19 pandemic regulators will step in.
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“At the end of the day, if we cannot find a way, we will regulate, of course,” Bloomberg quoted Breton as saying. Later in the debate, Breton said any increased regulation will be Zuckerberg’s doing. Brenton warned Zuckerberg that Facebook can’t put rivals at a disadvantage using its market power and needs to tread carefully when it comes to disinformation on its platform.
Social media platforms including Facebook and Alphabet’s (GOOG -0.67%) (GOOGL) Google have come under intense criticism during the pandemic that misinformation has been free-flowing, putting people at risk. The tech stocks have taken steps to curve that but misinformation is still showing up on the platforms. The European Commission is currently in the process of writing legislation that would put more onus on the U.S. tech companies to clean up the platforms and control the information shared.
While Zuckerberg said he expects regulation he expressed concern about the type of regulation the world will exact on the social media giant and others. He pointed to China as a framework he is worried regulators may embrace. Zuckerberg argued any regulation should be modeled on standards that come out of Western democracies. Zuckerberg and Thierry held face-to-face talks in Brussels in February.
Reuters quoted Brenton as saying the EU has held talks with many people including Zuckerberg and that some of the efforts have worked while others not so much. The debate was organized by the Centre on Regulation in Europe or CERRE.
