Spain’s High Court has issued a temporary suspension of the messaging application Telegram’s services within the country following complaints from media companies about unauthorized content uploads, a court source revealed.
Starting Monday, the use of Telegram in Spain will be temporarily suspended, following a petition from media giants such as Atresmedia, EGEDA, Mediaset, and Telefonica.
Judge Santiago Pedraz has granted the suspension of Telegram’s services in Spain pending investigation into the claims. The responsibility of blocking Telegram’s services will rest with mobile phone providers, according to the court source.
At the time of reporting, Telegram has not yet provided any comment in response to the request. Similarly, a spokesperson for the High Court has not responded to queries regarding the matter.
Telegram ranks as the fourth most popular messaging service in Spain, as per the findings of the competition watchdog CNMC. Approximately 19% of Spaniards surveyed by CNMC reported using Telegram.
The company has claimed to have amassed over 700 million monthly active users globally in 2023.
