Slashdot Mirror
Germany Approves Plans To Fine Social Media Firms Up To $57M (theguardian.com)
Social media companies face fines of up to 50m Euro ($57m) if they persistently fail to remove illegal content from their sites under a new law passed in Germany. From a report: The German parliament on Friday approved the bill aimed at cracking down on hate speech, criminal material and fake news on social networks -- but critics warn it could have drastic consequences for free speech online. Germany has some of the world's toughest laws covering defamation, public incitement to commit crimes and threats of violence, with prison sentences for Holocaust denial or inciting hatred against minorities. The measure requires social media platforms to remove obviously illegal hate speech and other postings within 24 hours after receiving a notification or complaint, and to block other offensive content within seven days. The German justice minister, Heiko Maas, who was the driving force behind the bill, said: "Freedom of speech ends where the criminal law begins."
It never went away. The Germans have always prioritized conformity over liberty. But they pay a price for that.
The 'price' they pay is social harmony... what a bummer.
There is a bit of a startup-culture in Berlin, but Germany has produced few tech companies. The biggest is SAP, which actually has a rather authoritarian culture.
Is this a joke? Are you back to smoking crack SanghaiBill?
Successful tech was Germany's thing for the whole second half of the 20th century.
If you were planning to start a tech company today, would you do it in Germany? $57 million says that you wouldn't.
Billions of dollars say you do. In Berlin.
Disclaimer: I live in Silicon Valley, and there are several German expats in my neighborhood. They are doing startups, but the aren't doing them in Germany.
There are many more successful startups in Germany now than there are in silicon valley. Disclaimer: I live in silicon valley.
If someone takes a chalk marker and draws something anti-Semitic on a window, and the owner of the window refuse to clean it up you indeed go after the window owner (not manufacturer incidentally, as facebook and social media are the owner, not manufacturer). See if you are getting reported that somebody put anti semite message on your window, then in germany you HAVE to remove it. Now you may culturally have grown in a place where one think *any* speech must be allowed (or nearly), that is fine and dandy, I am not about to debate the merit here. But the point is that your analogy is flawed - within the context of german law.