The Digital Services Act (DSA) Observatory

The Digital Services Act (DSA) Observatory is a new project run by the Institute for Information Law (IViR) at the University of Amsterdam, which kicked-off in January 2021. The DSA Observatory acts as a hub of expertise with respect to the “Digital Services Act” package presented by the European Commission in December 2020.

The DSA Observatory provides independent scientific input during the DSA debate and to engage different stakeholders on the DSA proposals, in particular on the challenge of confronting platform power from a fundamental rights and democratic values perspective. To achieve these goals, the Observatory will bring together a broad network of platform regulation experts in academia and other relevant stakeholders, including civil society organisations, policymakers and regulators.

The DSA Observatory will closely follow the DSA process and generate regular outputs on relevant developments, including through dissemination activities, workshops and expert meetings.

NEWS

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ANALYSIS

Why is enforcement of the DSA systemic risk framework still ignoring environmental risks?

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By Rachel Griffin

This post argues that environmental risks stemming from major online platforms—including those linked to digital infrastructure, generative AI, targeted advertising and e-commerce—straightforwardly fall within the scope of platforms’ risk management obligations under Articles 34 and 35 of the DSA. The author questions why neither platforms nor the European Commission have meaningfully addressed these risks, and argues that their continued omission reflects political priorities more than legal constraints.

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On the importance of “average monthly active recipients” (AMAR) in the recent case law of the General Court

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By Marie-José Garot, IE University

This post analyses how the General Court has clarified the concept of “average monthly active recipients” through three recent cases (Zalando, Meta, and TikTok). The interpretation given by the Court should oblige the European Commission to set a single methodology for calculating the AMAR, whatever the purpose it serves (for transparency obligations, the designation of VLOPs and VLOSEs, or the calculation of the supervisory fee).

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Ineffective by design: Bits of Freedom vs Meta at the forefront of enforcing user control for recommender systems under the DSA

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By Matteo Fabbri

This post unpacks the legal arguments and implications of Bits of Freedom vs. Meta Ireland, a case which constitutes  an important early example of private enforcement of the DSA and may influence EU-wide interpretations for how VLOPSEs must implement user controls for recommender systems.

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Platform Governance and Technology-Facilitated Gender-Based Violence: Positioning the DSA in the EU’s Legal Framework

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This post examines technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) as a systemic phenomenon shaped by platform design and cross-platform ecosystems, and maps the main EU legal instruments available to address it. It argues that while the Digital Services Act’s systemic risk framework is particularly well suited to tackling the structural drivers of TFGBV, its promise has yet to be realised in practice through implementation and enforcement.

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EVENTS

The Digital Services Act Observatory at the Amsterdam Law School will be hosting events on a variety of topics which are relevant to the DSA discussion and process. Information on these events will be posted here.

Please get in touch if you would like to share your ideas for a DSA-related event or discuss your research at one of our events.

Learning Call (25 June): GenAI and the DSA’s Systemic Risk Framework

June 8, 2026/by admin

Learning Call: The DSA as a Tool for Tackling Gender-Based Violence

May 1, 2026/by admin

Call for Papers: The DSA and Platform Regulation Conference 2026

July 9, 2025/by admin

Summer course 2024 on “European Platform Regulation”

March 19, 2024/by admin
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ABOUT

The DSA Observatory

The Digital Services Act (DSA) Observatory is a new project run by the Institute for Information Law (IViR) at the University of Amsterdam, which kicked-off in January 2021. The DSA Observatory acts as a hub of expertise with respect to the “Digital Services Act” package presented by the European Commission in December 2020.

Project team

The core project team for the DSA Observatory is composed of prof. Joris van Hoboken, Ilaria Buri, Paddy Leerssen, dr. Ronan Fahy, prof. Natali Helberger, prof. Martin Senftleben, dr. João Pedro Quintais and Doris Bujis.

Funding and collaboration with the Digital Legal Lab

The DSA Observatory is part of the “Digital Transformations of Decision-Making” research initiative of the Amsterdam Law School and contributes to the activities of the Digital Legal Lab, an interuniversity research centre on law and digital technologies run by a research network between four Dutch universities: Tilburg University, the University of Amsterdam, Radboud University Nijmegen and Maastricht University. This joint research initiative, the Digital Legal Studies Sector Plan for legal research is funded by the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science (OCW). The DSA Observatory was launched thanks to the funding of the Open Society Foundations.

CONTACT

The DSA Observatory team can be reached by email at:

j.v.j.vanhoboken@uva.nl or i.buri@uva.nl

2021-2026 © DSA Observatory