On Thursday, the Supreme Court of Brazil imposed a financial freeze on Elon Musk‘s Starlink, a subsidiary of SpaceX. This action is part of an escalating legal dispute that could potentially lead to the suspension of Musk’s social media platform, X, in Brazil.
What Happened: The court’s decision, signed by Supreme Court Judge Alexandre de Moraes, is a response to X, formerly Twitter’s lack of legal representatives in Brazil, reported Reuters.
The freeze also pertains to a separate issue regarding unpaid fines that X was directed to pay due to its failure to provide certain documents.
Starlink has acknowledged the receipt of the order, which bars the company from carrying out financial transactions in Brazil.
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The tech mogul also reacted to the news on X, lambasting Judge de Moraes as a “criminal wearing judges robes like a Halloween costume.”
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In another post, Musk stated that SpaceX and X are entirely separate companies with different shareholders. He owns roughly 40% of SpaceX, so this action by de Moraes unfairly punishes other shareholders.
Why It Matters: The Supreme Court has given X until 8:07 p.m. (2307 GMT) on Thursday to appoint a legal representative for Brazil.
The ongoing dispute revolves around whether Moraes can instruct X to block certain accounts accused of disseminating misinformation, a demand Musk has condemned as censorship.
Non-compliance with the court’s order could lead to X’s suspension in Brazil, one of its largest markets. This development comes at a time when Musk is struggling with advertising revenue for the platform.
X had previously announced its decision to halt operations and lay off its staff in Brazil, citing “censorship orders” from Moraes. Despite this, the company assured that its services would remain accessible to users in the country.
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