Turkey: Top companies complying with social media laws

ISTANBUL

Following Twitter’s decision to appoint a local representative, all top social media platforms will have a representative in Turkey.

Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, VKontakte (VK), YouTube, Dailymotion, TikTok, Spotify, Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video have all agreed to appoint a representative in Turkey in line with the new social media laws enforced in the country on Oct. 1, 2020.

Now that Twitter has accepted the requirement and video streaming app Periscope is set to shut down in March, Pinterest will be the only major social media company operating without a representative in Turkey.

With some 13.6 million users, Turkey ranks seventh among the most active countries on Twitter, according to data by German data firm Statista.

Under Turkey’s social media laws, companies that do not appoint a representative may face penalties including fines, advertisement bans, and restricted bandwidth.

*Writing by Ali Murat Alhas