‘No Easy Answers’ To Facebook or YouTube As The Federal Council Discusses Regulation Of Communications Platforms
Communication platforms and their use in Switzerland
In Switzerland, there are mainly three platforms used for communication between the citizens and companies; Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter. Contrary to journals, these platforms are not legally obliged to verify that the information is accurate. That's what The Federal Council is aiming to regulate to prevent their citizens from reading fake news.
Communication platforms have many benefits, such as:
- Further democratization of public communication.
- Participation directly in public discourse
- Contribution to express criticism publicly.
Using communication platforms represents a risk to users' data if not protected correctly. The need to protect the population from hate speech on the internet requires a broad discussion held at a meeting on November 17, 2021.
The legal future of communication platforms
The Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) will present a discussion paper at the Internet Governance Forum in Bali. The paper will be based on a report by the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) on the impact of social media on user privacy and freedom of expression. The Federal Council aims to have all the regulations drafted by the end of 2022.
In Switzerland, there are no plans to hire platform operators in the form of intermediaries regarding all the regulations that will enter into force.
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