Randahl Fink
You can follow Joe Biden on Mastodon at @potus.
But even though Kamala Harris both has a personal account on threads and a VP account, none of them have federation turned on, so they are not visible to Mastodon users.
If you know somebody who knows somebody in the administration, please tell them.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@anderspuck @randahl @potus Huh‽ @threads made #ActivityPub opt-in for legal reasons. @wordpressdotcom did the same thing. Both are massive, for-profit corporations who are under a lot of scrutiny.
Turning on #Fediverse sharing as a default option would open #Meta to not only potential personal lawsuits, but more wrath from the @EUCommission (which they are trying to avoid right now).
Anders Puck Nielsen
@randahl @potus It’s a ridiculous implementation of activity pub that means only a very small percentage of Threads users will be discoverable in the fediverse.
BeAware :fediverse:
@darnell @anderspuck @randahl it does really suck that these laws are getting in the way of open communication.😔
However, if there's a company that has the funds to make it known that they shouldn't have a legal obligation once the switch is flipped, it's Meta.
There's no benefit for them to do that though. They have shareholders they're beholden to and doing anything regarding Fediverse doesn't directly make them money and fighting laws like this, loses them money.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@BeAware @anderspuck @randahl Large corporations (anything above 1,000 full time employees) have to be careful when it comes to exposing consumer info, as they can be fined thousands, millions or even billions of dollars.
I currently work for a large company, & it is frustrating how simple, great ideas are killed or delayed by the legal department.
BeAware :fediverse:
@darnell @anderspuck @randahl yeah, makes sense. In this case though, there's no private info that can be leaked via AP unless they specifically build ways to leak it.
Everything that a user publicly posts, would be publicly federated. It's a simple point of consent.
If they'd write into they're "totally legally binding TOS"🙄 that anyone that signs up, is agreeing to these things, they should be in the clear, just like they seem to get away with everything else they put in there.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@anderspuck @randahl Yes, & #Threads is a #Fediverse app.
However, user privacy is a big deal, & if #Meta made #ActivityPub the default setting, they could end up with a privacy lawsuit from users who found their info on an evil instance or billion dollar fines from @EUCommission (who penalize based on global revenue).
Making #Fediverse opt-in saves Meta from spending more money on lawyers later on.
Anders Puck Nielsen
@darnell @randahl I don’t quite follow. Threads was a brand new app with no prior users. Surely Meta is allowed to make a client for the fediverse if they want to.
Randahl Fink
@darnell Mastodon is being developed in the EU. They have no problem federating.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@randahl @anderspuck @EUCommission No Mastodon site is seen as a gatekeeper company, nor are any under scrutiny for how they handle user information as a major corporation.
Meta is right now, which is the primary reason they held off on activating ActivityPub in EU nations.
Other companies, such as Apple, are also not releasing new features (like Apple Intelligence) in the EU for similar reasons.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@anderspuck @randahl @EUCommission Meta was also at “less” risk of being fined billions of dollars last year too. But here we are right now.
Anders Puck Nielsen
@darnell @randahl @EUCommission I don’t understand your argument. When Threads launched last year, they had zero users. There was literally no one whose privacy they needed to protect.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@randahl @anderspuck @EUCommission Meta is literally seen as a gatekeeper company by the EU. Mastodon (Social) is not, nor are they being threatened with billions of dollars in fines over user privacy issues.
It’s a legal issue with real world financial consequences if Meta messes up. Apple is in a similar situation as well, which is why they are not offering Apple Intelligence in the EU anytime soon.
Randahl Fink
@darnell the server mastodon.social is literally run by the corporation Mastodon gGmbH.
Legally, there is no difference between that and Meta running facebook.com.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@anderspuck @denspier @randahl @EUCommission I believe this is the primary reason #Meta has not activated #ActivityPub for @threads in #EuropeanUnion 🇪🇺 nations: https://www.techrepublic.com/article/apple-eu-digital-markets-act/
My theory: if Meta is fined 20% of their global revenue then they will abandon #Fediverse integration in #Europe out of spite (& could pull out of the region entirely).
I am not sure about #Apple though.
Anders Puck Nielsen
@denspier @randahl @darnell @EUCommission I think this thread has run off on a tangent. Of course Meta is allowed to make an app that uses ActivityPub if they are open about it when people sign up for the service. The DMA is about ensuring openness and breaking monopolies – not about forcing gatekeeper companies to keep creating walled gardens.
Den Spier :europe:
@randahl @darnell @anderspuck @EUCommission The difference is size. Mastodon doesn’t have a dominant position like Meta and Google. While GDPR apply to everyone, DMA only does to the very largest players.
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@randahl @anderspuck @denspier @EUCommission @threads #Meta is already under investigation over how they handle user information when it comes to advertising on #Facebook & #Instagram.
Turning on #ActivityPub in #Europe means Meta is sending out personal information to other instances, as well as obtaining information from other instances. That is the issue here, which can result in potential fines.
Randahl Fink
@darnell what specific EU law do you believe, Meta violates by turning on federation, just like every other company that runs a federated server does?
(Including the EU itself I might add.)
@anderspuck @denspier @EUCommission @threads
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@randahl @anderspuck @denspier @EUCommission @threads For what it is worth, the flagship #Misskey instance (https://misskey.io) has banned people residing in the #EuropeanUnion 🇪🇺 from signing up on their instance as they do not feel like messing with European laws: https://darnell.day/misskey-io-20-000-new-users-daily-discourages-europeans-from-signing-up-over
Darnell Clayton :verified:
@anderspuck @randahl @denspier @EUCommission @threads EU has strict policies when it comes to using user information for targeted advertising.
I doubt Meta will turn on ActivityPub for EU Threads users while their cases about Instagram & Facebook are pending.
Anders Puck Nielsen
@darnell @randahl @denspier @EUCommission @threads Meta hasn't turned on any fediverse integration for EU users yet, but it is not EU legislation that is holding them back in the rest of the world.
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