As more and more of our lives and trade rely on digital services, the European Commission decided in 2020 to propose a precedent-setting Digital Services Act (DSA) to create a “safer digital space in which the fundamental rights of all users of digital services are protected”. We built and stewarded a continent-wide movement of 113 countries from 23 EU member states to campaign together. People vs Big Tech significantly shaped this landmark piece of regulation.
“People Vs Big Tech campaign allowed to unify civil society and digital rights activists; bringing the debate into the mainstream. I’m grateful for the work of People Vs Big Tech. You should all be proud of the results achieved!”
Member of European Parliament
How did the People vs Big Tech coalition come about?
It was clear that the DSA consultation in 2020 was a once-in-a-generation opportunity to influence and inform how Big Tech should be held accountable. We helped 21 organisations – many representing at-risk or marginalised groups – to respond to the DSA consultation. That year, we also brought free expression, democracy, and ‘harms’ groups together to meet and share research with the European Commission, including one unprecedented meeting with the cabinets of three members of the Commission. Digital Action convened responses from civil society organisations across Europe which influenced the DSA.
Building on these connections, in June 2021 we convened a strategy session with 12 public mobilisation organisations around the impact of the Big Tech business model on democracy in Europe. This sparked and led the People Vs Big Tech movement, which over the course of 2021 and 2022, grew to 113 organisations from 23 EU Member states campaigning together.
The pan-European People Vs Big Tech coalition was a critical voice in shaping the landmark EU Digital Services Act with one Member of the European Parliament saying:
“We, the people of Europe, demand technology that serves us, instead of putting us, our communities and our democracies at risk. We call for an end to Big Tech’s destructive business model which has turned our own data into weapons against us. We demand a better internet, where citizens are able to access vital infrastructure and information, and thrive off connection and participation, without being reduced to products in an insidious surveillance economy. ”
From the People vs Big Tech Declaration
How did the coalition campaign?
As well as writing a joint People’s Declaration, the coalition partners took swift, public actions such as creating a Twitter bot that tweets every time a meeting is held between an EU official and a Big Tech company, to public protests outside of the European Parliament and Big Tech HQs. Their actions cut through the noise to successfully alert Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) of the Big Tech companies’ tactics and lobbying attempts. The network’s joint campaigning included exposing corporate lobbying, as well as SME polling and interventions from people like Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Ressa in the week of a crucial vote.
The campaign’s policy wins include tougher restrictions on how personal data can be used in targeted ads, including a ban on use of sensitive data and a requirement that platforms must provide continued fair access to users who turn off targeted ads, all included in the new Digital Services Act. And in January 2023, the coalition submitted joint feedback to the European Commission to ensure that the protections won in the Digital Services Act fight weren’t eroded in other regulations.
“The principal benefit of People vs Big Tech for me was the joint development of strong policy solutions, each organisation bringing its specialist knowledge and expertise, and genuine sharing of advocacy space with a unified campaigning voice.”
Policy Director, Avaaz
Who is involved?
Digital Action was convening the group but has now taken a step back. Ekō (formerly SumOfUs) has now taken the lead of the coalition and has attracted additional resources to sustain it. The coalition remains active and engaged, for example, by successfully mobilising in response to threatened legal action against a Kenyan whistleblower, leading to a commitment by the tech company he had worked for to not pursue the action.
The coalition has an ambitious new strategic plan which will take this work forward. It includes a strand on global equity led by Digital Action, which ties into our 2024 Year of Democracy campaign. If you would like to get involved, get in touch.
The following organisations signed the original People’s Declaration and are part of the coalition:
- aHang
- Albanian Media Council (Këshilli Shqiptar i Medias)
- Alliance4Europe
- All Out
- Amnesty Hungary
- Amnesty International
- Amnesty International Česká Republika
- Amnistia Internacional Portugal
- Associação ILGA Portugal
- Aufstehn.at
- Avaaz
- BeLonG To
- Betterplace Lab
- Bilitis Resource Center Foundation
- Campact
- Centar za mirovne studije \| Centre for Peace Studies
- Center for Countering Digital Hate
- Centre for Research on Multinational Corporations (SOMO)
- Civil Liberties Union for Europe
- Coalition For Women In Journalism
- Compassion in Politics
- Corporate Europe Observatory
- Critical Future Tech
- D64 (Germany)
- Daphne Caruana Galizia Foundation
- Dare to be Grey
- De Goode Zaak
- Declic
- Defend Democracy
- Defesa dos Direitos Digitais
- Demos
- DigiQ
- Disruption Network Lab e.V.
- Društvo Ženska svetovalnica
- Ελληνικό Παρατηρητήριο των Συμφωνιών του Ελσίνκι – Greek Helsinki Monitor
- Eesti Inimõiguste Keskuse
- Eesti LGBT Ühing
- Eticas Foundation
- Eurochild
- European Network Against Racism
- European Public Service Union (EPSU)
- European Roma Rights Centre
- European Trade Union Confederation/Confédération Européenne des Syndicats
- European Youth Forum
- Fair Vote UK
- Faith Matters
- Forum for Equitable Development
- Foundation for Market Information Research (SOMI)
- Foxglove
- Freedom United
- Friends of the Earth Europe
- Gays and Lesbians Accepted in Society Foundation
- Glitch
- Global Action Plan
- Global Witness
- Gong
- Hate Aid
- Hexatrust
- Human Rights Monitoring Institute
- Inštitut – Marec
- Institute for Strategic Dialogue
- International Simultaneous Policy Organisation (ISPO)
- Irish Council for Civil Liberties
- KaskoSan Roma Charity
- Le Mouvement
- LGBT Deystvie
- Lie Detectors
- Lobby Control
- Mirovni Institute
- Missing Children Europe
- Motif
- Netwerk Democratie
- Never Again Association / NIGDY WIĘCEJ
- New Design Congress
- Open Rights Group
- Panoptykon Foundation
- Ranking Digital Rights
- Rasismin Ja Muukalaispelon Vastainen Yhdistys Ry
- Reporters Sans Frontières
- Repubblika
- She Persisted
- Simply Secure
- Skiftet.org
- Statewatch
- Stop Climate Chaos
- Stop Funding Heat
- SumOfUs
- Superrr Lab
- Tell MAMA
- The Citizens
- The Good Lobby
- The London Story (Netherlands)
- The Peter Tatchell Foundation
- The Real Facebook Oversight Board
- The Signals Network
- Transparência Internacional Portugal
- Transparency International EU
- Transparency International Lithuania
- Transparency International Nederland
- Transparent Referendum Initiative
- Udesin
- Unblack the Box
- Unicorns in Tech
- UNI europa – The European Services Workers Union
- Uplift
- Waag
- WeMove Europe
- Women in AI (Austria)
- Women’s Lobby of Slovenia
- World Uyghur Congress (Germany)
- 0D
- 5Rights Foundation
- \#Jesuislà