The European Commission has published its first report under Article 91 of the Digital Services Act (DSA)
19 November 2025
On November 17, 2025, the European Commission published its first report under Article 91(1) of the Digital Services Act (DSA). The document assesses the application of Article 33 of the DSA, including the process of designating very large online platforms (VLOPs) and very large online search engines (VLOSEs), and analyzes how the DSA interacts with other European Union legal acts.
The report confirms that the criteria for designating VLOPs and VLOSEs, including the threshold of 45 million average monthly active users in the EU, are well-adapted to the dynamic nature of the digital environment. The Commission indicates that the current threshold effectively captures services that may pose systemic societal risks.
In the report, the Commission assessed the interactions between the DSA and 54 European Union legal acts, including, among others,Data protection, product safety, consumer rights, intellectual property, and issues related to democracy and justice. The report shows that in the vast majority of cases, the DSA complements existing regulations, providing a horizontal and harmonized basis for sectoral regulations. At the same time, it identifies areas where overlapping obligations or procedural discrepancies require better coordination to ensure regulatory consistency and clarity for citizens and businesses. It also indicates that regulations concerning, for example, artificial intelligence systems may require further clarification.
The report was prepared within the framework of the Commission's responsibilities and constitutes a significant contribution to assessing the effectiveness of the horizontal DSA framework and its relationship with sectoral regulations. The report emphasizes that the DSA remains the foundation of European regulation of digital services, while also providing valuable guidance for further work on simplifying and harmonizing regulations, supporting the pursuit of consistent, predictable, and proportionate regulation.
As the first in a series of reports required by the DSA by 2027, this document lays the foundation for future, in-depth assessments of the regulation's impact, including on the development and growth of small and medium-sized enterprises and the overall effectiveness of the DSA once it fully enters into force. Subsequent editions will allow for the development of an increasingly comprehensive picture of the functioning of EU digital regulations, their impact on the market and society, and areas for improvement.