Brazil bans X over misinformation; Starlink avoids a shutdown in the country by complying with ban

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The news: X (formerly Twitter) was banned in Brazil, going dark for at least 40.5 million active users over the weekend. It’s the latest government pushback on X’s refusal to moderate misinformation on its platform in the name of free speech.

  • Over 20,000 Brazilian ISPs blocked access to X when the social network failed to appoint a legal representative to handle government requests.

  • The ban will be in effect until X names a representative and pays fines for violating Brazilian laws.

Key fact: Brazil, China, Iran, Myanmar, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Turkmenistan, and Venezuela have all blocked X for varying reasons.

What led to the ban in Brazil? Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes blocked X after its owner, Elon Musk, refused to suspend accounts allegedly spreading election misinformation, per The New York Times.

  • Moraes gave Apple and Google a five-day deadline to remove X from their Brazilian app stores and block its use on iOS and Android platforms.

  • He imposed a daily fine of BRL 50,000 ($10,000) on anyone using virtual private networks (VPNs) to access X, although it’s unclear how that will be enforced. VPN demand has since surged in the country by as much as 1,600%, according to VPNMentor.

Meanwhile, BlueSky, an alternative to X, has had about 200,000 new users from Brazil sign up since the ban, per ABC News.

SpaceX’s Starlink avoids a shutdown: Artur Coimbra de Oliveira, a commissioner at Brazil’s telecommunications regulator, Anatel, told Reuters that Starlink was the only ISP that said it wouldn’t comply with the court decision to block X.

  • Anatel was looking into sanctions against Musk-owned Starlink, which included freezing its assets, and revoking the company of its license to operate in Brazil.

  • Starlink reversed its original decision late Monday and is complying with the order to block access to X.

  • Its compliance with the ban allows Starlink to continue serving its 250,000 subscribers in Brazil.

Analyst take: “Aside from now losing 40.5 million users in its third-largest market worldwide, X also stands to miss out on significant advertising revenue in a country where social media ad spending is set to account for roughly half of all digital outlays," said EMARKETER principal analyst Matteo Ceurvels.

“X remains a low-priority platform for most advertisers in Brazil, so the impact on its advertising business won’t be as severe as it would be if the platform were banned in more important ad markets like the US or UK," Ceurvels added.

Final word: X’s free speech principles are in direct conflict with Brazilian law, creating significant challenges for X’s global strategy. Aside from losing users, X stands to lose advertising revenue by being banned in the country.