BRUSSELS, Sept 3 (Reuters) -

Europe's biggest online fashion retailer Zalando

lost its court fight against EU online content rules on

Wednesday, boosting EU tech regulators' efforts to force online

platforms to do more to tackle illegal and harmful content on

their platforms.

Zalando sued the European Commission after it was

designated as a very large online platform (VLOP) under the

Digital Services Act (DSA), putting it in the same category as

Alphabet's Google and Meta Platforms ( META ) and

subject to onerous DSA requirements.

The company had argued that it differs from other online

giants and that it is a hybrid service consisting of both an

online shop and an online marketplace, selling its own products

as well as those provided by partners.

The Luxembourg-based General Court disagreed with its

arguments.

"The General Court dismisses Zalando's appeal against the

designation of its eponymous platform as a very large online

platform," the Luxembourg-based tribunal said.

Judges said the EU tech regulator was correct in assessing

Zalando's average monthly number of active users at more than 83

million and not around 30 million as it claimed on the basis of

the gross value of sales generated under its partner programme.

They said this was because Zalando itself was unable to

distinguish, among the more than 83 million people who used its

platform (including Zalando Retail and the Partner Programme),

those who were actually exposed to the information provided by

third-party sellers under the Partner Programme from those who

were not.

Zalando can appeal on matters of law to the Court of

Justice of the European Union, Europe's highest court.

Zalando's challenge is the first by a company against

the DSA. The General Court will rule next week on Meta and

TikTok's challenges against fees levied on them aimed at

covering the Commission's cost of monitoring their compliance

with the DSA.

The case is T-348/23 - Zalando v Commission.