US backs Musk against EU fine

The Trump administration's Department of Justice and State Department have filed to support Elon Musk's legal challenge against a 137 million euro fine imposed by the European Union on his platform X.

EU's first Digital Services Act penalty

The fine is the European Union's first sanction under the Digital Services Act, which requires online platforms to tackle illegal and harmful content more effectively.

US argues for American companies

The US government says it should intervene because many major platforms including Meta's Facebook and Instagram, Google's YouTube, and Microsoft's LinkedIn are US-headquartered and contribute significantly to the American economy.

“We will not tolerate the European Commission engaging in regulatory overreach to try and control American engines of innovation and economic growth.”

EU found X breached transparency rules

The European Commission fined X 120 million euros in December after a two-year investigation found the platform deceived users by calling paid blue checkmarks verified accounts and failed to provide data access to researchers.

Musk and X appeal the ruling

Both Musk and X launched appeals in February, calling the EU's investigation incomplete and superficial and claiming they were denied rights of defence, suggesting prosecutorial bias.

Trump calls penalties extortion

President Donald Trump has called the EU penalties overseas extortion and threatened tariffs on countries implementing digital regulation, which he said are designed to harm American technology companies.