Starting from 16 June, the Dutch Media Authority (“CvdM”) will also be monitoring influencers who have less than 500,000 followers. The media watchdog recently announced this.
In an earlier blog we reported about the then ongoing consultation of the draft Policy Rules on Qualification of Commercial Media On-demand Services 2025 (Beleidsregel kmca 2025), in replacement of the policy rules from 2022. One of the most important intended changes was the abolishment of the 500,000-followers threshold to fall under the active supervision of the Media Authority.
This change has been implemented finally and the updated version of the Beleidsregel kmca 2025 was published on 28 May 2025. The number of media services of video uploaders (influencers, vloggers and content creators) that fall under active monitoring has increased considerably as a result. This increase is in line with one of the focus points of the Authority; a safe online environment for young people. The Authority also observed in its monitoring of recent years that smaller video uploaders make statements that are harmful or commercially influence (under age) viewers in unrecognisable ways. It is high time to extend supervision, the Authority concluded.
All video uploaders who fall under active supervision must comply with the Media Act. Accounts with fewer than 100,000 followers or subscribers are an exception; they need not report to the Authority, nor pay annual supervision costs.
Since the supervision in 2022, the Authority has mostly been reluctant to impose fines on influencers. In the past three years, supervision consisted mainly of providing information, entering into informal talks and in general monitoring video uploaders, as appears from a report of the Authority. In the case of repeated breaches, the Authority can enforce the law more strictly, e.g. by imposing a fine. This has only happened once as yet: on 18 June 2024, a TikTok influencer was fined €6075 for rendering advertisements in videos posted insufficiently recognizable.
We will be following the consequences of the renewed policy rules with great interest.
