European Commission requests Amazon to provide details of DSA compliance

The European Commission has issued a Request for Information (RFI) to Amazon under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The Commission is seeking comprehensive information on Amazon’s measures to comply with DSA obligations regarding the transparency of recommendation systems, the maintenance of an ad repository and a risk assessment report.

The Commission’s RFI specifically asks Amazon to provide detailed information on its compliance with transparency requirements for recommendation systems. This includes information on the inputs, features, signals, information, and metadata used in these systems, as well as options available to users to opt out of profiling for recommendation systems. In addition, Amazon must provide details on the design, development, implementation, testing, and maintenance of the Amazon Store Ad Library online interface, along with supporting documents for its risk assessment report, the Commission said in a statement.

The European Commission has requested detailed information from Amazon under the Digital Services Act (DSA) regarding compliance with transparency requirements for recommendation systems, maintaining an ad repository and risk assessment. Amazon must provide insight into input factors, user opt-outs and development processes for these systems.

Amazon has been given a deadline of 26 July 2024 to provide the requested information. After assessing Amazon’s response, the Commission will decide on the next steps, which may include formally initiating proceedings under Article 66 of the DSA.

Under section 74(2) of the DSA, the Commission has the power to impose fines for providing incorrect, incomplete or misleading information in response to an RFI. If Amazon fails to respond, the Commission may issue a formal request by decision, with potential periodic penalty payments for non-compliance.

This motion follows the designation of Amazon as a Very Large Internet Platform and the decision of the Court to dismiss Amazon’s appeal to suspend the obligation to publicly provide an ad repository. Accordingly, Amazon is required to fully comply with the DSA obligations. This includes identifying and assessing all systemic risks relevant to its service, offering a recommendation system option not based on user profiling, and maintaining a publicly accessible ad repository.

Fibre2Fashion Press Office (KD)