जाहिरातदारांसाठी डिजिटल सेवा कायदा: जाहिरातींचे नियम काय आहेत?

The Digital Services Act (DSA, Regulation (EU) 2022/2065) affects advertisers in three ways: every online ad must be recognisable as an ad and name the party behind it, profiling-based ads using sensitive data or aimed at minors are banned, and an advertiser whose ad or account is restricted is entitled to reasons and an internal complaint. The DSA has applied to all providers since 17 February 2024; in the Netherlands the Authority for Consumers and Markets (ACM) has supervised it since 4 February 2025, with the Dutch Data Protection Authority (Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens, AP) responsible for the targeting bans.

This article explains what the DSA, the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and related rules mean for your campaigns, your own website and your disputes with platforms.

Does the DSA apply to you as an advertiser?

Indirectly, yes. Most DSA duties rest on intermediaries such as hosting services and online platforms, but platforms can only comply with the information you supply, and they enforce that through their terms of service.

Your own services may also fall within scope. A webshop with customer reviews, a forum, a comment section or a user-generated content campaign is a hosting service; a marketplace where third parties sell to consumers is an online platform. Micro and small enterprises are exempt from the heaviest platform duties, but not from the baseline rules for hosting services. Check the classification before a campaign goes live. The wider framework is set out in our article on नेदरलँड्समधील व्यवसायांसाठी DSA आणि DMA चा अर्थ काय आहे.

What must every online ad disclose?

Under Article 26 of the DSA, an online platform must show for each ad, in real time, that it is an ad, on whose behalf it is presented, who paid for it if that is someone else, and the main parameters used to select the audience. Two of those elements can only come from you.

This catches media agencies out. Where a campaign is bought through an agency, media buyer or reseller, the platform must still name the actual advertiser and payer. Account structures that hide the end client conflict with the DSA, and platforms respond by rejecting creatives or suspending accounts. The same applies to affiliate set-ups that leave the promoted brand vague.

Very large online platforms, designated by the European Commission, must also keep a public repository of the ads they show, including the content, advertiser, payer, period, targeting parameters and reach. Competitors, journalists and regulators can search it.

Which targeting is prohibited?

Two bans apply directly to media planning. Under Article 26(3) of the DSA, a platform may not show ads based on profiling with special categories of personal data under the GDPR, such as health, religion, political opinions, ethnic origin or sexual orientation. Under Article 28(2), it may not show profiling-based ads to a user it knows with reasonable certainty is a minor.

Interest segments that act as a proxy for those categories are caught too: a segment labelled with a medical condition or a religious observance falls under the ban even if the user was never asked directly. Under the Dutch DSA Implementation Act (Uitvoeringswet digitaledienstenverordening), the AP supervises both bans, so an advertising complaint can end up with the privacy regulator.

The DSA does not replace the GDPR. Behavioural advertising still needs a lawful basis, and placing or reading cookies needs consent under Article 11.7a of the Telecommunications Act (Telecommunicatiewet). Our overview of the सामान्य डेटा संरक्षण नियमन sets out the parallel requirements.

Are dark patterns in your funnel allowed?

No. The DSA forbids online platforms to design their interfaces in a way that deceives or manipulates users or materially distorts their free choice. Typical examples are countdown timers that reset, a prominent accept button with a hidden refusal, subscriptions that are easy to start and hard to cancel, and repeated nagging prompts.

For Dutch advertisers, the older rule is often the first one applied. Under Article 6:193b of the Civil Code, an unfair commercial practice towards consumers is unlawful; misleading advertising towards businesses is addressed in Article 6:194, and comparative advertising is allowed only under the conditions of Article 6:194a. The ACM enforces the consumer rules with administrative fines, so a funnel that fails the Dutch test will usually fail the DSA test too.

What can you do if a platform rejects your ad or suspends your account?

You are entitled to a clear and specific statement of reasons and to a free internal complaint procedure. If that fails, you can go to a certified out-of-court dispute settlement body without losing the right to go to court.

The statement of reasons must say what was restricted, on what ground, whether automated means were used, which term or legal rule was applied, and how to seek redress. Platforms file these statements in a public EU database, which shows how they apply a rule across the market. The internal complaint must remain possible for at least six months after the decision and may not be handled solely by automated means.

For commercial disputes, the Platform-to-Business Regulation (Regulation (EU) 2019/1150) is often more useful. It applies to marketplaces, app stores, price-comparison services and social media used commercially. A platform must give reasons when it restricts or suspends a business user and 30 days’ notice before ending the relationship, and it must publish its main ranking parameters. You can enforce this before the Dutch courts, in urgent cases through preliminary relief proceedings (kort geding) for reinstatement.

Documentation decides these cases. Keep the creative, targeting settings, the statement of reasons, the timestamps of each complaint and the platform’s replies.

What applies if you sell through a marketplace?

A marketplace may only admit you as a trader after collecting and making reasonable efforts to verify your name, address, telephone number, e-mail address, payment account, trade register (KVK) number and a self-certification that you only offer lawful products. Incomplete data leads to suspension.

The marketplace must also let you meet your own consumer information duties before the contract is concluded. For a Dutch seller, that means the pre-contractual information required by Book 6 of the Civil Code, the right of withdrawal under Book 6 BW and the conformity rules of Article 7:17 BW.

What does the Digital Markets Act add for advertisers?

The DMA applies only to gatekeepers designated by the European Commission, but it gives advertisers rights you can invoke. On request and free of charge, a gatekeeper must provide daily information on prices, fees and publisher remuneration per ad, and access to its performance measuring tools and the data needed to verify the inventory independently.

A gatekeeper may also not combine personal data across services for advertising without consent, or favour its own products in ranking. Exercise the information right in writing and compare the answer with your invoices. Fines for non-compliance are imposed by the European Commission; your own remedy remains contractual and evidential.

What rules apply to political and issue ads?

Regulation (EU) 2024/900 on political advertising has applied since 10 October 2025. Political ads must be labelled, carry a transparency notice naming the sponsor and the amounts paid, and be entered in a European repository; targeting is only allowed with personal data collected from the person with separate, explicit consent, and targeting of minors is banned.

The definition is broad. A message from an interest group, trade association or company that is liable to influence an election, referendum or legislative process can qualify. Several large platforms have stopped selling political ads in the EU, so for a public-affairs campaign the first question is whether the channel is still available.

Who supervises in the Netherlands?

The Dutch DSA Implementation Act, in force since 4 February 2025, designates the ACM as digital services coordinator and the AP for the targeting bans. The ACM handles complaints about providers established in the Netherlands and certifies out-of-court dispute bodies; the European Commission supervises the very large platforms. Maximum fines are set in Article 52 of the DSA as a percentage of worldwide annual turnover.

A national layer applies alongside. The Dutch Advertising Code (Nederlandse Reclame Code) is self-regulation, but rulings of the Advertising Code Committee are public and include specific rules for social media and influencer marketing, such as disclosing a commercial relationship. Video uploaders above the threshold of the Dutch Media Authority (Commissariaat voor de Media) must register and follow its advertising rules. The wider picture is set out in our article on नेदरलँड्स डिजिटलदृष्ट्या किती सुरक्षित आहे.

What should you check as an advertiser or agency?

Most DSA problems for advertisers come from account structures and audience segments. Check:

• Whether each ad account correctly states the advertiser and the payer, also when an agency buys media.
• Whether any audience segment relies on health, religion, ethnicity, political views or sexual orientation, directly or by proxy (Article 26(3) DSA).
• Whether campaigns could reach minors with profiling-based ads (Article 28(2) DSA).
• Whether your cookie banner meets Article 11.7a of the Telecommunications Act.
• Whether influencer posts disclose the commercial relationship under the Dutch Advertising Code.
• Who in your team files platform complaints, and within which period.

What should you check as a platform or webshop operator?

If you host user content or let third parties sell, you are a subject of the DSA yourself. Check:

• Whether your service is a hosting service, an online platform or a marketplace, and whether the micro or small enterprise exemption applies.
• Whether you issue statements of reasons when you remove content or block users.
• Whether you run an internal complaint system that is not fully automated.
• Whether you collect and verify trader data before admitting sellers.
• Whether your interfaces avoid dark patterns under the DSA and Article 6:193b BW.

What can we do for you with the Digital Services Act?

We advise advertisers, agencies, marketplaces and platform businesses on online advertising rules; see also our आयटी वकील पृष्ठ.

• We classify your services under the DSA tiers and list the duties that follow.
• We review your media-buying contracts and account structure for advertiser and payer transparency.
• We audit audience segments and consent flows against the DSA, GDPR and Telecommunications Act.
• We draft complaints against ad rejections and account suspensions and take them to an out-of-court body or court.
• We prepare written DMA information requests to gatekeepers.
• We assess whether a public-affairs campaign falls under the political advertising regulation.

सारांश

• The DSA has applied since 17 February 2024; the ACM and AP supervise it in the Netherlands since 4 February 2025.
• Every ad must show that it is an ad and who is behind it and who paid (Article 26 DSA).
• Profiling with sensitive data and profiling-based ads to minors are banned.
• If a platform restricts your ad or account, you are entitled to reasons and a free internal complaint.
• Political advertising has its own regime since 10 October 2025.

सतत विचारले जाणारे प्रश्न