The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled today that France may require pornographic websites based in other EU member states to implement age verification measures for users, aiming to protect minors from accessing harmful content [1, 2, 3].
The court acknowledged that while France’s rules restrict the free movement of online services within the EU, they are justified on public policy grounds, specifically the protection of minors [1, 2]. This ruling means France can apply its age-check requirements not only to domestically hosted porn sites but also to providers established elsewhere in the bloc.
However, the court emphasized that protective measures can only apply to providers in other EU countries after France formally requests action from the provider's home member state and notifies both that country and the European Commission, except in urgent cases [1, 2]. This respects the EU’s existing country of origin principle, which holds that online services are generally regulated by the member state where they are established [1, 2].
The case was brought by two Czech companies, WebGroup Czech Republic and NKL Associates, challenging the French rules imposing age verification on pornography [1, 2]. The court also clarified that porn site operators cannot claim hosting liability exemptions if they control or restrict user content stored or rebroadcast on their platforms [1, 2, 3].
This ruling comes amid broader EU efforts to address youth access to harmful online content. The EU is preparing a voluntary age-verification app, and several countries are considering restrictions similar to Australia’s laws to protect minors online [1, 2]. Meanwhile, the UK government announced plans to ban users under 16 from major social media platforms starting in 2027 [1, 2].
