It is just a project, but it reveals what the EU’s concerns are and, predictably, the rules that will be debated in the coming years. On this occasion, efforts are aimed at stopping the techniques that digital platforms use to hook citizens to their products, addictive techniques such as infinite scrolling (showing content after content, without the user needing to click at any time and without interruptions that motivate you to leave a place) and that its own creator (Aza Raskin) called “behavioral cocaine.”
Last Wednesday, the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee of the European Parliament adopted a draft report (with 38 votes in favor, none against and a single abstention) that warns about the addictive nature of certain digital services, such as games. online, social networks, streaming services and online services, “markets that exploit people’s vulnerabilities to capture their attention and monetize their data,” the European Parliament points out.
And they go further. MEPs say the Commission should examine and ban harmful addictive techniques that are not covered by the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive, such as infinite scrolling, default autoplay, push and constant read notifications. Because? Because they play with people’s vulnerabilities and desires and push them to spend more time on these platforms.
Speaker Kim Van Sparrentak (Greens/EFA, Netherlands) believes that “no self-discipline can overcome the addictive design to which we are all subject today. Problematic smartphone use affects attention span and brain development from an early age. This is one of the challenges of our time. If we don’t intervene now, this will have a huge impact on generations to come. We already have strict health and safety regulations for food, alcohol and tobacco to protect our health. The EU must tackle addictive design now!”
MEPs are clear that social networks are very positive for society (for example, increasing efficiency, accessibility, connectivity), but they warn that “their addictive design can cause physical, psychological and material damage (loss of concentration and ability cognitive, exhaustion, stress, depression, limited physical activity)”, they point out. MEPs are especially concerned about the impact that digital addiction has on children and adolescents, who are more vulnerable to these symptoms, and call for more regulation in this area.
MEPs want companies to be forced to develop ethical and fair digital products and services “by design”, without dark, misleading and addictive patterns.
In his opinion, the Commission should propose a digital “right not to be disturbed” and create a list of good design practices such as: “Think before you share”; turn off notifications by default; chronological feeds; grayscale mode; automatic warnings or blocks after a pre-established time of use (particularly for minors); summaries of total screen time…
The European Commission is currently carrying out an assessment to see whether certain consumer protection legislation needs to be updated to ensure a high level of protection in the digital environment. The results are expected in 2024.
