S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   8963
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              August 13, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. BORES -- read once and referred to the Committee
   on Consumer Affairs and Protection
 
 AN ACT to amend the general business law, in  relation  to  establishing
   the NY digital choice act
 
   THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

   Section 1. The general business law is amended by adding a new article
 48 to read as follows:
                                ARTICLE 48
                           NY DIGITAL CHOICE ACT
 SECTION 1800. SHORT TITLE.
         1801. DEFINITIONS.
         1802. PORTABILITY.
         1803. INTEROPERABILITY.
         1804. DATA RIGHTS.
         1805. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.
         1806. ENFORCEMENT BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.
         1807. SEVERABILITY.
   § 1800. SHORT TITLE. THIS ARTICLE SHALL BE KNOWN AND MAY BE  CITED  AS
 THE "NY DIGITAL CHOICE ACT".
   §  1801.  DEFINITIONS.  AS  USED  IN THIS ARTICLE, THE FOLLOWING TERMS
 SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   1. "OPEN PROTOCOL" MEANS A PUBLICLY AVAILABLE TECHNICAL STANDARD THAT:
   (A) ENABLES INTEROPERABILITY AND DATA EXCHANGE  BETWEEN  SOCIAL  MEDIA
 PLATFORMS  BY  PROVIDING  A  COMMON  DATA  INFRASTRUCTURE WHERE MULTIPLE
 SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS CAN ACCESS,  CONTRIBUTE  TO,  AND  SYNCHRONIZE  A
 COVERED USER'S SOCIAL GRAPH;
   (B) IS FREE FROM LICENSING FEES AND PATENT RESTRICTIONS; AND
   (C)  GOVERNS  HOW SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS COMMUNICATE AND EXCHANGE DATA
 WITH EACH OTHER.
   2. (A) "SOCIAL GRAPH" MEANS:
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD13423-05-5
              

 A. 8963                             2
 
   (I) A COVERED USER'S SOCIAL CONNECTIONS WITH SECONDARY USERS;
   (II) CONTENT CREATED BY A COVERED USER;
   (III)  THE  COVERED  USER'S  RESPONSES  TO  SECONDARY  USERS' CONTENT,
 INCLUDING COMMENTS, REACTIONS, AND SHARES;
   (IV) SECONDARY USERS' RESPONSES TO THE COVERED USER'S CONTENT; AND
   (V) METADATA FOR SUBPARAGRAPHS (I), (II),  (III),  AND  (IV)  OF  THIS
 PARAGRAPH.
   (B)  "SOCIAL  GRAPH"  DOES  NOT  INCLUDE A COVERED USER'S OR SECONDARY
 USER'S CONTENT AND RESPONSES THAT HAVE BEEN DESIGNATED PRIVATE  BY  SUCH
 COVERED USER OR SECONDARY USER, INCLUDING PRIVATE MESSAGES.
   3. "CONTENT" HAS THE SAME MEANING AS IN SECTION ELEVEN HUNDRED OF THIS
 CHAPTER.
   4.  "SOCIAL  MEDIA  COMPANY" HAS THE SAME MEANING AS IN SECTION ELEVEN
 HUNDRED OF THIS CHAPTER.
   5. "SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM" HAS THE SAME MEANING AS IN  SECTION  ELEVEN
 HUNDRED OF THIS CHAPTER.
   6.  "COVERED  USER" HAS THE SAME MEANING AS IN SECTION FIFTEEN HUNDRED
 OF THIS CHAPTER.
   7. "SECONDARY USER" MEANS A USER OF A WEBSITE, ONLINE SERVICE,  ONLINE
 APPLICATION, OR MOBILE APPLICATION THAT IS DEVELOPED, DEPLOYED, OR OPER-
 ATING  IN  WHOLE  OR  IN  PART IN THE STATE AND THAT IS NOT ACTING AS AN
 OPERATOR, OR AGENT OR AFFILIATE OF AN OPERATOR, OF SUCH WEBSITE,  ONLINE
 SERVICE, ONLINE APPLICATION, OR MOBILE APPLICATION, OR ANY PORTION THER-
 EOF, IRRESEPECTIVE OF SUCH USER'S PHYSICAL LOCATION.
   8.  "DATA  PORTABILITY"  MEANS  THE ABILITY OF COVERED USERS OF SOCIAL
 MEDIA PLATFORMS TO RETAIN EXISTING SOCIAL GRAPHS WITHOUT  IMPAIRMENT  OF
 QUALITY,  RELIABILITY,  OR  CONVENIENCE  WHEN SUCH INFORMATION IS TRANS-
 FERRED FROM ONE SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORM OR THIRD PARTY TO ANOTHER.
   § 1802. PORTABILITY. IF A COVERED USER REQUESTS A COPY OF SUCH COVERED
 USER'S SOCIAL GRAPH UNDER THIS ARTICLE, A  SOCIAL  MEDIA  COMPANY  SHALL
 PROVIDE THE SOCIAL GRAPH, IN A FORMAT THAT:
   1. ALLOWS FOR DATA PORTABILITY, TO THE EXTENT TECHNICALLY FEASIBLE;
   2. IS READILY VIEWABLE BY THE COVERED USER; AND
   3.  ALLOWS  THE  COVERED  USER  TO TRANSMIT THE DATA TO ANOTHER SOCIAL
 MEDIA PLATFORM OR THIRD PARTY WITHOUT IMPEDIMENT  IF  THE  SOCIAL  MEDIA
 PLATFORM OR THIRD PARTY PROCESSES THE DATA BY AUTOMATED MEANS.
   §  1803. INTEROPERABILITY. 1. A SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY SHALL IMPLEMENT A
 TRANSPARENT, THIRD-PARTY-ACCESSIBLE INTEROPERABILITY INTERFACE OR INTER-
 FACES TO ALLOW COVERED USERS TO CHOOSE TO:
   (A) SHARE A COVERED USER'S SOCIAL GRAPH BETWEEN THE SOCIAL MEDIA PLAT-
 FORMS DESIGNATED BY THE COVERED USER; AND
   (B) ENABLE THIRD PARTIES TO ACCESS CONTENT CREATED BY THE COVERED USER
 AND TO BE NOTIFIED WHEN NEW OR UPDATED CONTENT IS  AVAILABLE,  WITH  THE
 COVERED USER'S PERMISSION.
   2.  TO ACHIEVE INTEROPERABILITY UNDER SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION,
 A SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY SHALL:
   (A) UTILIZE AN OPEN PROTOCOL;
   (B) FACILITATE AND  MAINTAIN  INTEROPERABILITY  AND  SYNCHRONOUS  DATA
 SHARING  WITH  OTHER  SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS THROUGH AN INTEROPERABILITY
 INTERFACE, BASED ON REASONABLE TERMS THAT DO  NOT  DISCRIMINATE  BETWEEN
 SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS;
   (C)  ESTABLISH  REASONABLE AND PROPORTIONATE THRESHOLDS RELATED TO THE
 FREQUENCY, NATURE, AND VOLUME OF REQUESTS, BEYOND WHICH THE SOCIAL MEDIA
 COMPANY MAY ASSESS A REASONABLE FEE FOR SUCH ACCESS;
   (D) MAKE AVAILABLE TO OTHER  SOCIAL  MEDIA  COMPANIES  A  FUNCTIONALLY
 EQUIVALENT  VERSION  OF  ANY  INTERNAL  INTERFACES CREATED BY THE SOCIAL
 A. 8963                             3
 
 MEDIA COMPANY FOR THE SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY'S OWN SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS;
 AND
   (E)  DISCLOSE  TO OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANIES COMPLETE, ACCURATE, AND
 REGULARLY UPDATED DOCUMENTATION DESCRIBING ACCESS TO  THE  INTEROPERABI-
 LITY INTERFACE REQUIRED UNDER THIS SECTION.
   3. A SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY OR THIRD PARTY SHALL TAKE REASONABLE PRECAU-
 TIONS  TO  SAFEGUARD THE PRIVACY AND SECURITY OF A COVERED USER'S SOCIAL
 GRAPH AND ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED VIA AN INTEROPERABILITY INTERFACE.
   4. A SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY OR THIRD PARTY MAY NOT SHARE  OR  RECEIVE  A
 COVERED  USER'S  SOCIAL  GRAPH  THROUGH  THE INTEROPERABILITY INTERFACE,
 EXCEPT WITH THE COVERED USER'S CONSENT.
   5. A SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY SHALL ADOPT AN  ACCESSIBLE,  PROMINENT,  AND
 PERSISTENT  METHOD  FOR  COVERED  USERS TO GIVE CONSENT FOR DATA SHARING
 WITH OTHER SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS OR THIRD PARTIES THROUGH THE  INTEROP-
 ERABILITY INTERFACE.
   6. A SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY IS NOT REQUIRED TO:
   (A) PROVIDE ACCESS TO:
   (I) INFERENCES, ANALYSES, OR DERIVED DATA THAT THE SOCIAL MEDIA COMPA-
 NY HAS GENERATED INTERNALLY ABOUT A USER; OR
   (II)  PROPRIETARY ALGORITHMS, RANKING SYSTEMS, OR OTHER INTERNAL OPER-
 ATING MECHANISMS; OR
   (B) TRANSMIT DATA THAT MEETS ALL OF THE FOLLOWING CRITERIA:
   (I) SUCH DATA IS STORED OR STRUCTURED IN A PROPRIETARY FORMAT;
   (II) NO OPEN, INDUSTRY-STANDARD FORMAT IS REASONABLY AVAILABLE; AND
   (III) TRANSMITTING THE DATA WOULD DISCLOSE  INFORMATION  DESCRIBED  IN
 PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
   §  1804.  DATA  RIGHTS.  UPON  SPECIFIC REQUEST FROM A COVERED USER, A
 SOCIAL MEDIA COMPANY SHALL ALLOW SUCH COVERED USER TO DELETE THE DATA IN
 SUCH COVERED USER'S SOCIAL GRAPH, AS WELL AS  ANY  DATA  THAT  HAS  BEEN
 DESIGNATED PRIVATE BY SUCH COVERED USER.
   § 1805. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY. THE ATTORNEY GENERAL MAY PROMULGATE SUCH
 RULES  AND  REGULATIONS AS ARE NECESSARY TO IDENTIFY OPEN PROTOCOLS THAT
 SATISFY THE REQUIREMENTS OF THIS ARTICLE.
   § 1806. ENFORCEMENT BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.  IN  ADDITION  TO  ANY  OTHER
 REMEDIES  PROVIDED  BY  LAW, WHENEVER THERE SHALL BE A VIOLATION OF THIS
 ARTICLE, APPLICATION MAY BE MADE BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL IN THE NAME  OF
 THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK TO A COURT OR JUSTICE HAVING JURIS-
 DICTION BY A SPECIAL PROCEEDING TO ISSUE AN INJUNCTION, AND UPON  NOTICE
 TO  THE DEFENDANT OF NOT LESS THAN FIVE DAYS, TO ENJOIN AND RESTRAIN THE
 CONTINUANCE OF SUCH VIOLATIONS. IF IT SHALL APPEAR TO  THE  SATISFACTION
 OF  THE  COURT OR JUSTICE THAT THE DEFENDANT HAS, IN FACT, VIOLATED THIS
 ARTICLE, AN INJUNCTION MAY BE ISSUED BY SUCH COURT OR JUSTICE  ENJOINING
 AND  RESTRAINING ANY FURTHER VIOLATION, WITHOUT REQUIRING PROOF THAT ANY
 PERSON HAS, IN FACT, BEEN  INJURED  OR  DAMAGED  THEREBY.  IN  ANY  SUCH
 PROCEEDING,  THE  COURT  MAY  MAKE ALLOWANCES TO THE ATTORNEY GENERAL AS
 PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH SIX OF SUBDIVISION  (A)  OF  SECTION  EIGHTY-THREE
 HUNDRED  THREE  OF THE CIVIL PRACTICE LAW AND RULES.  WHENEVER THE COURT
 SHALL DETERMINE THAT A VIOLATION OF THIS ARTICLE HAS OCCURRED, THE COURT
 MAY IMPOSE A CIVIL PENALTY OF NOT MORE THAN TWENTY-FIVE HUNDRED  DOLLARS
 FOR EACH VIOLATION.
   § 1807. SEVERABILITY. IF ANY CLAUSE, SENTENCE, PARAGRAPH, SUBDIVISION,
 SECTION OR PART OF THIS ARTICLE SHALL BE ADJUDGED BY ANY COURT OF COMPE-
 TENT JURISDICTION TO BE INVALID, SUCH JUDGMENT SHALL NOT AFFECT, IMPAIR,
 OR INVALIDATE THE REMAINDER THEREOF, BUT SHALL BE CONFINED IN ITS OPERA-
 TION  TO  THE CLAUSE, SENTENCE, PARAGRAPH, SUBDIVISION, SECTION, OR PART
 A. 8963                             4
 
 THEREOF DIRECTLY INVOLVED IN THE  CONTROVERSY  IN  WHICH  SUCH  JUDGMENT
 SHALL HAVE BEEN MADE.
   §  2.  This  act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
 have become a law. Effective immediately, the addition, amendment and/or
 repeal of any rule or regulation necessary  for  the  implementation  of
 this  act  on its effective date are authorized to be made and completed
 on or before such effective date.