France is ready to launch DSA enforcement in 2025

As the enforcement of the Digital Services Act (DSA) dominates public policy debates at the start of the year, France has been adopting decrees laying the foundation for the future national enforcement of DSA rules. This marks the beginning of DSA enforcement in France, with ARCOM, the French Digital Services Coordinator (DSC), set to appoint a new President on 2 February 2025, Mr. Martin Ajdari.

On 3 January 2025, the French Competition and Consumer Authority (DGCCRF) was officially designated as the competent authority for the supervision and enforcement of the DSA. The DGCCRF will now be empowered to fully exercise its authority to investigate and sanction non-compliance with DSA provisions, including those related to trader traceability, compliance by design, and transparency obligations.¹

Additionally, on 30 December 2024, a decree was issued specifying ARCOM’s investigation powers as the French DSC. This decree outlines the procedures ARCOM may follow to conduct auditions, perform on-site inspections, and request judicial injunctions against service providers to enforce DSA compliance.²

The use of these new powers by both ARCOM and the DGCCRF will undoubtedly raise important questions, particularly in light of the compatibility of these provisions with the DSA’s supervision and enforcement framework. One such example is ARCOM’s newly granted power to “collect, from any intermediary service provider offering a service [on French territory], information necessary for the preparation of [cross-border cooperation requests to other DSCs or a referral to the Commission]”, the implementation of which is likely to be controversial.

Authored by Christelle Coslin and Hicham Kaddoum.