Italian bill proposes curbs on social media addiction

Italian senators on Wednesday presented a draft law to tackle social media ​addiction that seeks to increase the responsibility of ‌online platforms for the way content is distributed ​to users. It comes amid growing ⁠scrutiny across Europe of digital platforms and follows a U.S. ruling last month that found Meta and Alphabet’s ‌Google negligent for designing social media platforms deemed harmful to young people.

The proposal, ‌backed by the opposition Democratic Party (PD), would ‌require ⁠platforms to stop profiling users ⁠by default and provide greater transparency over how algorithms determine the content shown to users.

“Every time we open a social ​network, an algorithm ‌decides what we see – not by chance, but to keep us glued to the screen for as long as possible,” PD Senator Antonio ‌Nicita said in a statement.

The bill seeks ​to hold platforms accountable for the design of the systems they use to ⁠distribute content. “Algorithmic design is not a technical detail. It is a corporate choice with consequences,” the draft ‌law states.

There was no immediate comment on the bill from members of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s conservative coalition, but Nicita, a former member of the Italian communications watchdog Agcom, was hopeful it could have cross-party support.

“This is ‌a bipartisan issue, and at the moment everyone agrees ​on banning certain practices for minors,” he said, adding that the real issue that ⁠needed addressing was the design of algorithms, rather ⁠than social media content. In a separate proposal, the co-ruling League party has proposed a ‌social media ban for children under 14, following similar moves adopted or under discussion ​in several other countries.