What the DSA is
The Digital Services Act (Regulation (EU) 2022/2065) is the EU's platform-accountability law. It applies to any online platform offering services to users in the EU, regardless of where the platform is established. Etsy, eBay, and the model marketplaces all serve EU users, so they all owe DSA duties for content visible in the EU.
Where the DMCA is a copyright-specific bargain, the DSA covers all "illegal content" and copyright infringement is squarely inside that definition. For a creator chasing stolen STLs, the DSA is a second, parallel enforcement channel with some real advantages.
Article 16: the notice
Article 16 obliges hosting services to run an easy-to-use, electronic notice-and-action mechanism. A valid DSA notice contains four things:
- A sufficiently substantiated explanation of why the material is illegal (here: it reproduces your copyrighted work without authorization; say which work and why you hold the rights).
- The exact electronic location. The URL of the infringing listing, plus additional identifying info where needed.
- Your name and email address. (Exception: certain offenses can be reported anonymously, but copyright claims need an identifiable rights holder.)
- A good-faith statement that the notice is accurate and complete.
Notably absent versus the DMCA: no statement under penalty of perjury and no physical address requirement. A complete Article 16 notice also has a legal side effect platforms care about: it creates "actual knowledge" of the illegal content, which strips the platform of its hosting liability shield if it fails to act expeditiously. That is the lever.
What the platform owes you back
- Confirmation of receipt without undue delay (Article 16(4)).
- A decision taken in a "timely, diligent, non-arbitrary and objective manner", with notification to you (Article 16(5) and (6)).
- A statement of reasons to the seller whose listing is removed, explaining what was removed and why, and what redress exists (Article 17). This paper trail is public policy: removals get logged in the Commission's DSA Transparency Database.
If the platform refuses or the seller pushes back
- Internal complaint system (Article 20). Free, electronic, available for at least six months after a decision. It works both ways: you can contest a refusal to remove, and the seller can contest a removal.
- Out-of-court dispute settlement (Article 21). Certified independent bodies decide contested moderation decisions for a modest fee. If you win, the platform refunds your fees.
- Trusted flaggers (Article 22). Entities awarded trusted-flagger status by a national Digital Services Coordinator get their notices processed with priority. Status is granted to organizations with demonstrated expertise, not individuals.
- Misuse rules (Article 23). Platforms must suspend frequent infringers, and also frequent senders of manifestly unfounded notices. Honesty cuts both ways here, same as §512(f) in the U.S.
DSA versus DMCA, in practice
- Scope. DMCA: copyright only, but global in effect on U.S.-market platforms. DSA: all illegal content, but the duty attaches to the EU-facing service.
- Formality. DMCA notices need six elements including a perjury statement. DSA notices need four and no perjury language.
- Put-back. DMCA has the rigid §512(g) counter-notice with a 10-to-14 business-day restore window. DSA uses the internal complaint plus out-of-court route, with no automatic restore deadline.
- Transparency. DSA forces platforms to explain refusals and publishes moderation decisions; the DMCA does not.
- Damages. The DMCA connects to U.S. statutory damages if you registered the work and choose to litigate. The DSA is enforcement plumbing, not a damages statute; monetary claims still run through national copyright law.
Rule of thumb: for a listing on a big marketplace, a DMCA notice through the platform's copyright portal is still the fastest single move. Add the DSA channel when you are in the EU and the platform stalls, when you want the refusal in writing, or when the infringer is an EU seller on an EU-facing storefront.
How Cult Shield uses both
When Cult Shield drafts an enforcement case, jurisdiction picks the instrument: DMCA §512(c)(3) notices for U.S.-process platforms, Article 16 notices for EU-facing services, and both where coverage overlaps. Every notice goes out only after you approve it, and every statement of reasons and platform reply lands in the same case file. If you enforce by hand, this primer plus the DMCA primer cover the two templates you need.
Not legal advice
This guide is general education about an EU regulation, not legal advice, and Cult Shield is not a law firm. For disputes, damages, or cross-border litigation, talk to an IP attorney in your jurisdiction.