Is it possible to create a responsible European social network? For Panodyssey, the answer is yes, and it's necessary.

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In early February, the heads of Meta, TikTok, X (formerly Twitter), Discord and Snap were questioned by the US Senate. Put in the dock, they were severely attacked. What are they accused of? The dangers of social networking for children and teenagers. "There are no tools to hold companies accountable. Instead, survivors and their advocates are reduced to begging these companies to put safety ahead of profits," denounced Democratic Senator Dick Durbin, who heads the Senate Judiciary Committee that initiated the hearing.

There's no doubt that laissez-faire is no longer acceptable. But is it possible to draw the lines for a new world of social networking? This is the project of the Panodyssey social network. Interview with Alexandre Leforestier, its founder.

What is the Panodyssey social network and what is its philosophy?

Designed in Europe, Panodyssey is available internationally in 5 languages (French, English, Italian, German and Spanish). The community is mainly French-speaking. Data is stored on European servers. To date, the network counts 1,500 certified creators who have published at least one piece of content in a Creative Room. Over the last 12 months, Panodyssey has accumulated 500,000 readers. Readers remunerate and support authors without going through the advertising process. Each creator is free to set his or her own rules for monetizing content and making ends meet. The optional integrated monetization system is aimed above all at professional creators and publishers: it's the business model of the press. We do not commercialize our users' personal data, and we protect the intellectual property of our creators.

Regarding the project's philosophy, Panodyssey is a social network dedicated to creative writing, helping authors to share their creations with as many people as possible in a secure and ethical way. Our aim is to create a peaceful, secure digital space where people can read and write quality content that invites discovery, knowledge and reflection. We asked ourselves whether it was possible to create a social network around text, and how we could create processes and functionalities that would protect and secure members. These are fairly simple things that we learn at school: everyone has rights and duties. So we decided to certify the identity of anyone wishing to publish publicly on the network.

How do you verify identities and, above all, protect them?

Identity is authenticated by our services at the time of registration. Self-published authors go through a certification process that takes less than a minute. They must enter their first and last name and date of birth, and upload a valid identity document. In case of doubt, we can even organize a video. The identity document is not stored on our servers. We have set up processes to organize the traceability and time-stamping of publications from the moment an account is created. For brands and organizations, the process is different and takes a little longer. In addition to identity information (KBIs, etc.), we also check brand ownership data. On Panodyssey, all brands are protected, even those without an account. It is therefore impossible to open a Nike account, for example, except for the brand. These two processes fulfill their mission and are totally reliable. This lays the foundation stone of trust in the edifice.

After that, everyone is free to publish under their own name or under their author name/pseudonym. It is therefore possible to remain anonymous. Especially since anonymity is sometimes necessary, as it is for whistle-blowers or journalists working in high-risk areas, for example. This process also protects intellectual property, which is the essence of content and data. These are basic fundamentals that are fairly simple to achieve technologically. We demonstrate that developing a technological tool while ensuring digital identity is possible.

Why isn't this rule the norm on social networks? Is it a question of architecture, which was not foreseen (Facebook is 20 years old), or a question of business model, which, if it were more regulated, would be less profitable?

It's a question of will. Especially when your name is Meta and you're one of the most profitable companies in the world. Every technology company has its own stages of development and growth. All this requires a different economic and ethical approach. Obviously, you're cutting yourself off from millions of fake accounts. When business models are based on advertising, this obviously has an impact on the number of impressions sold. The result: fewer KPIs to enter into Excel spreadsheets, and therefore less growth. It's a question of responsible choice, and one that requires transparency and education across the entire value chain, to raise awareness.

What measures do you think should be taken to guarantee user safety?

The question is whether we should continue to do anything at all. The answer is clear: we need to put our house in order. This was Thierry Breton's message to Elon Musk very recently, as well as that of the American senators to the heads of the social networks that were audited. Bringing order means regulating, but also punishing (severely). Alternatives need to emerge to show that things can work differently. We need to create digital tools for entertainment, education and safe, ethical information.

How do you do it?

First, there are common-sense rules. A regulatory framework has been in the making for several years now, under the auspices of the European Union, with a number of directives aimed at regulating the use of technologies. So, first and foremost, it's a question of will. I've been in the Internet business for 25 years, and we often hear the expression that it's the "wild west". Let's make sure it isn't anymore. That means making decisions that go against the grain of established business models and laissez-faire. We could draw an analogy with the early days of online music and piracy, which consisted in absorbing music content illegally. By dint of regulation, awareness-raising and the sanctions that must be part of the system, we have succeeded in drawing the lines of a new market. And it's working. The streaming market is now booming. For social networks, it's a question of drawing inspiration from what has happened in the music sector.

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You mention societal issues. Are social networks a danger for democracies?

There's no doubt about it. The damage caused by social networking is deleterious not only to children. Attention and concentration problems, violence, harassment, online hatred... This mode of operation, which offers more and more toxic, fast-paced and jerky content, dehumanizes human beings. These practices have intimate and societal consequences. We need to be aware of all this, and not forget that social networking has above all a social dimension. To regulate and control is to act on behalf of humanity. And democratic issues are unquestionably at the forefront. Let's not forget the recent American elections. At Panodyssey, we not only campaign, we also cooperate with Europe to propose solutions that will enable Internet users to benefit from alternative, responsible tools.

Europe is now trying to regulate, but why don't we have a social network as powerful as the Americans or the Chinese?

Above all, it's a question of resources. European investors have never developed a financial doctrine, an investment philosophy, to undertake and finance this type of project. This is regrettable, and unfortunately far from being the case. Decision-makers and operators misunderstand the stakes in this sector, which requires substantial investment. You can't ask for a five-year ROI, it's impossible. That's why investment funds focused on quick returns aren't going in. Secondly, on a personal note, I regret that the leaders of the French creative and cultural industries are too close to the GAFAM environment. These interdependencies don't facilitate the emergence of new products or alternatives. And that's a shame. If we draw a parallel with the music industry, the leaders, and Universal in particular, had taken steps to participate in the emergence of a new large-scale industrial and digital space. It should be pointed out, however, that at European level, since the new mandate (2018), tools to help and support the emergence of European social networks have been put in place. The creation of the Europe Creative Innovation Lab is a concrete example of the European Commission's action. The ambitious Trusted European Media data Space (TEMS) consortium, which brings together over 40 European partners including France Télévision, AFP, INA, Procirep and Panodyssey, is another example of European action.

Speaking of these tools, you're a member of the Creative Room European Alliance (CREA). What is CREA?

It's a consortium we've launched with the support of the European Commission. CREA aims to create a new European digital cultural ecosystem that encourages content creation while combating misinformation. Panodyssey has been chosen as the platform for this new ecosystem under construction. Currently made up of 9 players from the media, including the Spanish news agency Agencia EFE, culture, education and digital sectors based in several European countries, CREA aims to bring together a community of 10 million creators and 100 million Internet users by 2030.

At the start of 2024, Panodyssey is launching a third European consortium (CREA Trust AI) around AI and interoperability with press and cultural publishers, in partnership with news agency Agencia EFE and Arte TV. A CREA Trust AI event is scheduled for April 2024 in Paris.

Beyond ethics and security, what sets you apart from other social networks?

Our vision is first and foremost to be an open social network. As a reader, you don't have to create an account to access 100% of our content. All content is referenced in Google, which is an advantage in terms of SEO performance and , ultimately, visibility. Readings are counted by counter.

But unlike other social networks, our content lives on. Panodyssey is a house of creativity based on a network of engagement, where likes aren't everything. From a content discoverability point of view, since this is the sinews of war, we have structured our database to multiply categorization points and ensure that each niche can find its audience. After that, everyone is free to personalize their experience or not. The user is the boss, not the algorithm. Long-form content (articles, news...) is available in the Creative Rooms. The News Feed, which is ultimately a discoverability feed, is dedicated to short formats. The two are complementary. It is possible at any time to share a long format published two years ago in the News Feed. As we don't have a business model linked to advertising, all our investments are aimed at multiplying discoverability points and building APIs that will connect to other services as well as to connected objects (connected objects in Braille, for example). These dimensions of accessibility and discoverability do not exist in social networks as we know them. They accumulate more and more content, which lives less and less time, for a shorter and shorter attention span. With us, it's just the opposite.

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