With EU Voice and EU Video, two European alternatives to Twitter and YouTube are now being piloted. The European Union relies on open source software for its own social media platforms and promises strong data protection.
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EU Voice and EU Video launched
As a data protection-friendly alternative to the US platforms Twitter and YouTube, the EU has Test operation of EU Voice and EU Video announced. EU Voice presents itself as a kind of microblogging platform that is strongly reminiscent of Twitter. In addition to short texts, videos and images can also be shared. When it comes to software, the EU relies on Mastodon.
EU Video is that counterpart to YouTube. The free and decentralized software PeerTube, which has been in development since 2017, is used in the background. Just like YouTube, videos can be published, shared and commented on (Source: European Data Protection Supervisor).
EU Voice and EU Video are available as Means of communication for EU institutions created. Individual institutions and offices such as the European Commission can distribute content there without being dependent on US platforms. Many EU institutions have already created accounts and posted initial content.
Current tech news at a glance:
The new EU platforms are ad-free and open sourceto provide more transparency. They are designed to “prioritise individuals and their rights to privacy and data protection,” as EU data protection commissioner Wojciech Wiewiórowski explains. Personal data will not be transferred to countries outside the EU. User profiling does not take place.
EU platforms as part of the open source strategy
EU Voice and EU Video are part of the Open Source Strategy 2020 – 2023. The aim is to switch to free and open source software. The fact that not all EU institutions are equally involved was recently shown by the Frontex border guard, which switched to Microsoft 365 without a prior data protection check.