THE WHAT? Zalando will challenge its classification under the European Union’s Digital Services Act in the Court of Justice; the first legal dispute to arise from the new legislation, according to a report published by Reuters.

THE DETAILS Zalando has been classified as a very large online platform (VLOP), lumped together with Meta and Google, but the German fashion retailer contests that it does not present a ‘systemic risk of disseminating harmful or illegal content from third parties’, per Reuters.  

THE WHY? The VLOP designation triggers the most stringent rules of the DSA, making compliance more onerous. Zalando CEO, Robert Gentz told Reuters, “The European Commission misinterpreted our user numbers and failed to acknowledge our mainly retail business model. The number of European visitors who connect with our Partners is far below the DSA’s threshold to be considered as a VLOP.”