Monetising Harmful Content on Social Media

Abstract

The possibility to profit from the dissemination of harmful content triggering views, engagement, and ultimately monetisation does not only concern the contractual relationship between social media and influencers, but also affects how other users enjoy digital spaces. The monetisation of harmful content by influencers should be a trigger, first, to expand the role of consumer law as a form of content regulation fostering transparency and, second, to propose a new regulatory approach to mitigate the imbalance of powers between influencers and users in social media spaces.

Keywords

• Big Tech, Consumer Protection, Consumer Protection Law, Content Monetization, Contract Law, harmful content, online harms, Platform Governance, Platform Regulation, Platforms, Radical Reforms, Social Media