Undefined Verification Standards Burden Innovation

This provision requires all publishers to conduct "necessary due diligence" to verify information accuracy, with "higher standards" for media houses, journalists, influencers, commentators, celebrities, brands, and multinational companies—but neither term is defined. Digital platforms, media startups, and content creators cannot determine what conduct satisfies the law, creating impossible compliance challenges for businesses operating at scale. The tiered system penalizes growth: successful digital creators face heightened obligations precisely when they achieve market success. Combined with the annual audits, risk assessments, and fact-checking requirements elsewhere in the bill (80, 81, 82), this creates substantial compliance costs and legal uncertainty that will drive over-compliance, stifle innovation in digital media, and create significant barriers to market entry for startups.