1 year ago
81 Executive Vice President for A Europe Fit for the Digital Age Margrethe Vestager spoke to CNBC successful Brussels.
Thierry Monasse | Getty Images News | Getty Images
BRUSSELS — Elon Musk's thought for a subscription exemplary to wage for Twitter's sought-after bluish cheque is "completely flawed," Europe's contention main told CNBC Wednesday.
"If you person imposter accounts, of course, I deliberation your concern exemplary is fundamentally flawed," Margrethe Vestager, enforcement vice president of the European Commission, told CNBC astatine an lawsuit successful Brussels, Belgium.
"If you are to wage to beryllium vetted and to beryllium certified arsenic being who you are and everyone tin beryllium you ... I deliberation that concern exemplary simply is wholly flawed," she added.
Twitter precocious launched its Blue subscription service, whereby users paying $7.99/month would get the societal media platform's coveted bluish cheque — a instrumentality antecedently utilized to verify the individuality of politicians, journalists and different nationalist figures.
New Twitter CEO and sole manager Elon Musk said Tuesday that the work would beryllium relaunched connected Nov. 29. It follows a intermission connected the diagnostic after a question of users began impersonating verified accounts.
Vestager, herself, said she remembers erstwhile she obtained the bluish cheque mark. "I don't deliberation I person impressed my daughters truthful overmuch ever since." However, she recognized that "it remains to beryllium seen" however utile the instrumentality volition beryllium successful the future.
"We request to spot however this develops earlier immoderate decisions are taken," Vestager said astatine the European Business Summit.
A spokesperson for Twitter was not instantly disposable to remark erstwhile contacted by CNBC.
'We are ne'er connected a collision course'
Several European officials person warned Musk astir the request to comply with European rules. The EU has reinforced its laws successful caller years to tackle disinformation and support users' privacy.
As a result, 1 of its biggest achievements has been the Digital Services Act, oregon DSA, which entered into unit arsenic of Wednesday and instructs Big Tech connected however to support users harmless online.
Vestager said the revised rulebook makes her much comfy successful monitoring developments crossed Big Tech, including Musk's changes astatine Twitter, but she denied that her squad is connected a collision people with the firm's main executive.
"We are ne'er connected a collision people with anyone due to the fact that we see ourselves a mountain," Vestager said.
"I deliberation it's precise important that radical spot the services that are being delivered. I myself precise overmuch appreciated the things that Twitter was doing," Vestager said, citing features connected the level that suggested users work a quality nonfiction earlier they stock it and directing users to authoritative accusation connected Covid vaccines.
"All of these things [make] Twitter a overmuch much trustworthy societal platform. And I deliberation it's precise bittersweet to spot that the radical who ventured these innovations, that they look to person nary say," she added.
