European-Commissioned Social Media Platforms, EU Voice and EU Video, to Close Operations Following Successful Pilot Program

The European privacy supervisor EDPS will cease operation of EU Voice and EU Video on May 18, two free open source social media platforms that were launched in 2022 as part of a pilot program. Unfortunately, the EDPS has been unable to find any partners willing to take over the management of these platforms.

EDPS President Wojciech Wiewiorowski has stated that the project has demonstrated that public authorities, such as European institutions, can provide alternatives to the existing social media platforms owned by major corporations, while still upholding the rights of individuals. Wiewiorowski considers the pilot project, initiated in 2022, to have been a success.

A press release from EDPS reveals that EU Voice currently has approximately forty accounts belonging to EU entities, including accounts held by Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) and European Commissioners. Additionally, there were reportedly six active accounts on EU Video. The EDPS will support the administrators of these accounts in transitioning to alternative platforms within the Fediverse.

Both EU Voice and EU Video were launched in April 2022 as part of a pilot initiative. These platforms are free decentralized social networks created by the European Data Protection Supervisor (EDPS). EU Voice, based on Mastodon, allows users to share short messages, images, and brief videos. EU Video, built on the PeerTube video platform, enables users to share longer videos and podcasts. Notably, the platforms are open source and data is not shared outside of the EU and the European Economic Area. There are no ads displayed on the platforms, and user profiling is not conducted.