Private firm to adjudicate on disputes under DSA
The media and online-safety regulator has certified a second organisation to settle disputes between online platforms and their users.
Under the Digital Services Act (DSA), organisations that are established in Ireland can apply to Coimisiún na Meán (CnaM) for certification as an out-of-court dispute-settlement (ODS) body.
CnaM said that it had certified Impress Dispute Resolutions (IDR) as an ODS body for the five years from 14 May this year to 14 May 2031.
IDR is a subsidiary of independent British press regulator Impress.
Decisions non-binding
Article 21 of the DSA entitles recipients of a service to select a certified out-of-court ODS body to resolve disputes relating to online platforms’ decisions.
This includes decisions relating to complaints that have not been resolved through the platform’s internal complaint-handling system.
The decisions of ODS bodies are not binding.
CnaM has granted IDR certification for the resolution of disputes relating to specific categories of illegal content published on content-sharing and social-media platforms.
Impartiality
To be certified as an ODS body, a body must satisfy the following conditions:
- Impartiality and independence, including financial independence, in relation to providers of online platforms and recipients of the service,
- Expertise on areas of illegal content,
- ODS body members must be paid in a way that is not linked to the outcome of the procedure,
- The ODS settlement must be easily accessible, and include the ability to initiate the dispute settlement and to submit the requisite supporting documents online,
- Swift and efficient dispute settlement, and
- Clear and fair rules of procedure that are easily and publicly accessible.
CnaM had previously granted Appeals Centre Europe certification for a five-year period from 26 September 2024, for disputes on the application and enforcement of terms and conditions of online platforms.