The EU General Court has dismissed in full the action brought by Technius, the company behind Stripchat, against its designation as a very large online platform under the Digital Services Act. The company had reported about 31.8 million average monthly active users in the EU, while the Commission, using Similarweb data, found unique visitors exceeded 62 million. The court held that the Commission's method was reliable and that a later correction of Similarweb's figures did not affect the legality of the decision. The DSA threshold is 45 million users.

What it means: The ruling matters well beyond this platform, because it concerns how users are counted for applying the DSA. The court accepted that the Commission may rely on third-party measurement data and reject methods that artificially lower user numbers. It also held that legality is judged on the data available when the decision was taken, not on later corrections. For digital platforms near the thresholds, the message is that creative user accounting is not a safe strategy. For Greek platforms, far below the 45 million mark, the core DSA duties already apply: notice-and-action mechanisms for illegal content, advertising transparency and regular publication of EU active user figures. The judgment is a reminder that those numbers are not a formality but can be checked and challenged. Companies building marketplaces or social apps should document their measurement method and apply it consistently from the start. The judgment can still be appealed to the Court of Justice.

Read the original on Court of Justice of the EU (General Court)

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