Key Points
- X was suspended in Brazil after defying court orders to ban accounts and remove harmful content.
- The platform has been restored after Musk’s company complied with Brazil’s legal demands.
- During the suspension, competitors Bluesky and Threads gained millions of users in Brazil.
- Musk faced investor pressure to comply with Brazilian law, avoiding significant fines and account freezes.
Elon Musk’s social media platform, X (formerly Twitter), is back online in Brazil after a months-long suspension from a standoff between the company and Brazil’s Federal Supreme Court Minister, Alexandre de Moraes. The platform was suspended on August 31, following a court order that Musk had initially resisted.
In a post from its global government affairs account, X announced its return, stating, “X is proud to return to Brazil. Giving tens of millions of Brazilians access to our indispensable platform was paramount throughout this entire process. We will continue to defend freedom of speech, within the boundaries of the law, everywhere we operate.”
Brazil’s Supreme Court, known as Supremo Tribuno Federal (STF), confirmed that X had met the conditions set by de Moraes, allowing the platform to resume operations in the country. The suspension had been ordered due to Musk’s refusal to comply with Brazil’s internet regulations, designed to curb the spread of hate speech, incitements to violence, and political misinformation. The laws also require tech companies to maintain a legal representative within Brazil, which Musk had initially declined to do.
Musk’s defiance included closing X’s headquarters in Brazil and publicly criticizing de Moraes, calling him a “fake judge” and comparing him to Voldemort, the antagonist from the Harry Potter series. Musk’s comments further inflamed the standoff, drawing attention to the country’s strict internet laws aimed at protecting democratic institutions.
However, mounting pressure from investors in Musk’s ventures, including SpaceX and Starlink, forced a change of course. Facing significant fines and potential freezes of X and Starlink’s business accounts in Brazil, Musk’s company eventually relented and agreed to the court’s demands by late September.
During the suspension, competitors such as Bluesky and Threads experienced a surge in user growth in Brazil as people sought alternative platforms. Data from SimilarWeb indicated that millions of Brazilians migrated to these services in response to X’s absence. On Tuesday, G1 Globo reported that Brazilians regained access to X after the court lifted the suspension.
The company’s compliance with Brazilian law marks the end of a standoff that disrupted X’s presence in one of its key markets. It also highlights the challenges tech companies face when navigating local regulations.
