X, ByteDance, Booking.com likely to face tough EU rules

The European Commission has announced that Elon Musk's X, formerly Twitter, along with TikTok owner ByteDance and Booking.com, may meet the criteria set forth by the Digital Markets Act (DMA) to be considered as "gatekeepers" in the European Union. These criteria include having more than 45 million monthly active users and a market capitalization exceeding 75 billion euros ($81 billion).

If designated as gatekeepers, these companies would be subject to stringent regulations aimed at ensuring fair competition in the digital market. Some of the obligations imposed on gatekeepers include making their messaging apps interoperable with rivals, allowing users to choose which apps to pre-install on their devices, and refraining from favoring their own services over competitors' offerings.

The European Commission has 45 working days to decide whether to officially designate these companies as gatekeepers. During this period, the Commission will also consider any arguments presented by the companies to challenge the presumption of being designated as gatekeepers.

ByteDance had previously been labeled as a gatekeeper in July of the previous year, but TikTok has contested this designation in court. It remains uncertain which other services offered by ByteDance could be classified as core platform services under the DMA.

Booking.com has anticipated being classified as a gatekeeper this year due to the growth in its user base.

Several other tech giants, including Alphabet (Google), Amazon, Apple, Meta (Facebook), and Microsoft, were designated as gatekeepers under the DMA in the previous year.

(With Reuters Inputs)