Lawmakers in France unanimously approved a bill to regulate paid social media influencers in addition to cracking down on fraud, officials said on Thursday.
France’s Ministry of Economy, Finance and Industry and Digital Sovereignty said in a news release that France has become the first country in Europe and among the first in the world to adopt a framework to regulate commercial influence, United Press International (UPI) reported.
The law, which takes effect immediately, creates a regulatory body within the General Directorate of Competition, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Prevention with a team of 15 agents and outlines the legal definition of commercial influence activities.
It also establishes a duty of transparency that requires influencers to label all paid content and prohibits commercial businesses from hiring influencers to promote certain goods and services which include medicine, cosmetic surgery, nicotine and wild animals.
According to the text of the law, those who violate the law can be fined up to 300,000 euros — or about US$322,858 — as well as two years in prison.
In addition, advertisers are required to comply with advertising laws such as those requiring television and radio advertisers to promote physical activity in advertisements for soft drinks and processed foods.
