Masnick calls the UK's reach over American sites overreach but doubts the immunity argument
Mike MasnickTechnology-policy commentator
Masnick calls the extraterritorial application of the Online Safety Act significant regulatory overreach that raises serious First Amendment concerns. He also writes that the suit's argument that Ofcom is a private enterprise feels like a stretch and that its backup claim feels unlikely to succeed.
“The UK’s attempt to regulate American websites through threats of fines and imprisonment raises serious First Amendment concerns. The extraterritorial application of the Online Safety Act represents significant regulatory overreach.”
Analysis
Where this statement fits
4chan lawyer Preston Byrne says Ofcom cannot enforce its fines in the United States
Preston Byrne, 4chan's lawyer, calls Ofcom's warning about foreign collection limits a practical defeat. Ofcom defends its UK safety duties and describes enforcement options. A U.S. court dismissed 4chan's challenge on immunity grounds without deciding a future collection case.
Source and context
Analysis
About this source
Masnick criticizes extraterritorial regulation while predicting that the plaintiffs' immunity arguments may fail. This commentary predates the dismissal.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Masnick writes that 4chan and Kiwi Farms are not sympathetic figures but that, on the narrow legal and constitutional questions at stake, they are not wrong.
After the quotation
He writes that if such jurisdictional overreach goes unchallenged when it targets unsympathetic defendants, there will be no grounds to object when it targets more deserving ones.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is Ofcom's attempt to enforce the Online Safety Act against American sites. Masnick calls the act's extraterritorial application significant regulatory overreach that raises First Amendment concerns, which criticizes that enforcement.
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More from this case
Read the full casePreston Byrne says Ofcom cannot enforce the Online Safety Act in America
“Ofcom can’t enforce the Online Safety Act in America.”Read statement
Ofcom's Melanie Dawes says some online safety fines may be unrecoverable if foreign courts intervene
Ofcom
“We won't be able to recover every single fine on online safety. If foreign courts decide to try and get in our way, there will be a point at which we have to accept that we won't be able to recover that money. But we will always seek to go as far as we can.”Read statement
Byrne says the immunity ruling weakens Ofcom's enforcement threat against Americans
“Ofcom prevailed on this point, which may have won Ofcom this motion, but it also will make it much more difficult for Ofcom, in the future, to present a credible enforcement threat to an American.”Read statement
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The Dispute Index. "Masnick calls the UK's reach over American sites overreach but doubts the immunity argument". First published: 2026-10-28. Last updated: 2026-10-28. https://disputeindex.com/events/7026-masnick-calls-the-extraterritorial-application-of-the-online